


Son of Athena

by Shinigami2530



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Crossover Pairings, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, F/M, Mythology References, Slow To Update
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:48:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 46,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27604453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shinigami2530/pseuds/Shinigami2530
Summary: When Lily and James Potter asked a goddess to grant them a child, they had no idea that their simple wish would have so many consequences, especially when that child is raised by a legendary witch long thought dead. Rated mostly for language.
Relationships: Silena Beauregard/Harry Potter
Comments: 3
Kudos: 35





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: The following is a non-profit work of fan made fiction. Harry Potter is the property of J. K. Rowling. Percy Jackson and the Olympians is the property of Rick Riordan.
> 
> Warning 1: Personalities of a few (if not most) characters have been changed slightly or majorly to fit the story.
> 
> Warning 2: Majority of this story takes place in the PJO-universe, and features an extremely smart Harry.
> 
> Warning 3: Expect a few clichés.
> 
> Warning 4: This is a rewrite. The original is present on fanfiction.net.

* * *

(31 Oct 1991)

Albus Dumbledore placed the bundle in his arms on the doorstep of a house. He knew it wasn't the best place for the baby sleeping in the bundle, but they were his only living relatives. The protection on him would not work unless he was with his blood-relatives, even if they may not treat him properly.

He had also placed letter with the baby, hoping that the residents of No. 4 Privet Drive would treat him as he, Dumbledore, hoped that they would.

He took a few steps back, allowing a giant man, Rubeus Hagrid, say goodbye to the baby. His other colleague and his right hand woman, Minerva McGonagal, was still telling him it was a bad idea, but it fit straight into his Blood Wards which would protect him from harm.

The three of them apparated away to Hogwarts, not noticing the lone owl watching them. While this may not raise any eyebrows – an owl gazing out in the night was a common sight – this particular owl was larger than any other owl on the planet. It had piercing stormy-gray eyes, white feathers with golden streaks, and an overall majestic appearance.

The owl flew over to the sleeping form of the baby, transforming into a woman upon reaching. The woman was undoubtedly beautiful, having long, dark hair, and eyes similar to her owl form. Her gaze was calculating, as if thinking more than a million thoughts at the same time. She was dressed in Greek battle armour, a spear and shield strapped to her back.

Athena picked her son up from the porch, bringing his small, sleeping body close to her chest. Her son, Harry Potter, was a survivor of the killing curse. While she was happy that he survived, it left a bitter-sweet sensation in her mind knowing that his parents, and perhaps the most intriguing mortals in Magical Britain, had crossed the river.

To her, Harry was special. He was based from two mortals – James and Lily Potter, who had managed to gain her attention in a local chess tournament she participated in. While one would expect her to play the ancient strategy game against someone like Garry Kasparov, she had lost a bet against Apollo. Thinking back on it, she should not have bet against the God of Prophecies on who was going to win the FIFA world cup last year. But the sun-burnt idiot was playing on her pride. As a result, she had to play chess in a local chess tournament in England. That was also the part of the bet.

When she reached the final round of the boring tournament, she had to fight off against a red-haired, emerald eyed woman called Lily Potter.

And she almost managed to beat Athena. Or rather a bored Athena who underestimated her foe.

But nonetheless, Athena was impressed by Lily, to the point that Athena revealed who she really was and granted her a wish.

Lily and her husband, James, who was also with her, both asked for a child.

She agreed, and used her omnipresence to spend some time with the couple over the next few months to get to know them better. She was further impressed by Lily's analytical and strategic mind, and James's mastery over magic. When she had gathered enough information on her child's future parents, she created Harry.

Athena was brought out of the flashback when Little Harry woke up in her arms. Eyes that were similar to her own stared back at her, but the ones on the young boy had a greenish tinge. It made them much more beautiful in her eyes. Perhaps she should add that to all her future children? No... Harry would be the only one. The gene that coded for eye colour could not be modified so as to put two colours in the same eye. It had only happened here because of his magic. Or she had done something to his genes that coded eye-colour without realizing it. Either way, she didn't particularly want that to happen, as she preferred the stormy grey in its purity rather than this greenish tinge.

And besides, Athena was not the ones to play around with the human genome, even though she had already removed the short-sightedness of her son when he was in her mind. Since she raised the foetus in her mind, she could remove or modify genes that she felt would be detrimental to her child's well-being.

Any condition of the eye was amongst 'detrimental to my child' list, and hence was fixed.

She was still trying to fix the dyslexia without taking away the ability to read and write Ancient Greek.

Harry giggled in Athena's arms, causing her to smile. Which turned into a frown. She recognized the look in his eyes: recognition. That should not be possible; he had never seen her. She had sent him to his parents as soon as he was born, like she did with all her children. Perhaps it was an instinct that told him that she was his mother? She'd need to investigate this further.

Filing it away for later, she ran a finger over his lightning-shaped scar, lulling him to sleep. 'Someone trying to cheat death, huh? Oh well... It seems I will be owing Thanatos a favour.'

With that, Athena vanished into nothingness with her son.

* * *

Athena (and Harry) appeared on a cold, desolate river bank. In front of the goddess was a house made from bones, skulls, and tombstones. This was the house of Thanatos, on the banks of Cocytus. The cold air didn't affect Athena much, but Harry shivered uncontrollably for a few seconds until Athena wrapped him up in a warmer blanket that was conjured within a thought's notice. Then he slept peacefully. As soon as he was notified about her presence, Thanatos walked out the front door.

He was a six-foot tall, buff man, but his face and body were covered in a dark robe. His ever present scythe was draped over his back, the silvery black Stygian Iron blade of the scythe glowing softly, yet menacingly. Most would consider the dark skinned god to be a beautiful man – not handsome, but beautiful.

"Lady Athena," Thanatos said in a deathly rasp of a voice. "What do you require me for?"

"Take a look on my son's forehead, Thanatos," Athena replied.

Thanatos did so. And he did NOT like what he found. A soul shard?! That meant a mortal was trying to cheat him. _'CHEAT ME? THE GOD OF DEATH? I AM GOING TO_ _–_ _why is Athena glaring at me? Oh. The little one is crying._ ' Thanatos then realized that he was not only releasing a deathly aura that would have sent even the strongest of men and women crying, he was also thinking out loud. REALLY loud.

Athena was glaring daggers at Death, all the while comforting her son who was crying loudly from being woken up abruptly. How she did it Thanatos had no idea, and he did NOT want to find out. So he simply (and painlessly) extracted the soul shard from Harry's forehead, and walked (ran) back into his house, knowing that the Goddess of Wisdom was still glaring at him. He even forgot to send the shard into the Soul RegeneratorTM to begin reconstruction of the soul as more and more shards would begin to come into his (Hades's) dominion.

Would it be insane if Thanatos feared Death right now?

Athena glared at Death's House one final time, before disappearing in a flash of light with her son, who was sleeping again in her arms.

* * *

In a luxurious penthouse in Manhattan, a young woman who was possibly in her twenties went around doing her nightly activities, such as brushing her teeth, taking a shower, and the like. She was quite attractive, with raven hair that flowed down her back, and a body to make underwear models green with envy. Her eyes were the same as that of her mother, Athena.

She was obviously rich; given how her furniture was made from the finest mahogany and the view outside was a beautiful picture-perfect Manhattan skyline, along with the geometry of Central Park. The utensils were either ceramic or silver, and the comfy-looking couches had the outer coat of authentic Italian leather.

While she was in a blue nightgown, she was not going to sleep just yet. They were airing a special show on a brilliant scientist and her own brother, Richard Feynman. He had, rather unfortunately, passed away three years ago, and the show was a sort of a documentary of him. There was no way she would miss something like this for the world.

Behind her were three portraits that were arguing amongst themselves. Yes. Portraits that were arguing. Or to be more accurate, the ones depicting two males were arguing while the lone female was playing peacemaker.

One of the two males was a regal looking man with short, but messy black hair and sky-blue eyes. He had a scar running down from his left eyebrow, across the bridge of his nose, and finally stopping on his right cheek. His attire consisted of red and gold armour with a red lion crest on his chest. His name was Godric Gryffindor, a son of Zeus, and the (self-proclaimed, yet accepted) leader of the Four Founders of Hogwarts.

The man he was arguing with had straight, shoulder-length jet black hair, and green eyes. His skin was pale enough to be confused with that of a vampire. His face held a sly look, and his eyes had a mischievous glint He wore simple green robes with snake-like patterns and his hands were depicted with three silver rings. On his neck sat a locket with a fancy-looking 'S'. His name was Salazar Slytherin, a son of Hermes, and a childhood friend and rival of Godric. He was also the most hated man in Magical Britain, for reasons he did not know. Seriously, they believed Godric, Helga and Rowena to be some sort of heroes, and him to be a muggle-hating megalomaniac. If that was the case, he wouldn't have been with those three, and Merlin would have cast him out of his tutelage a long time ago.

The third portrait depicted the only woman. She had long, blonde hair and warm, brown eyes held on a beautiful face. Her attire consisted of black and gold robes with a single badger in the center. Her name was Helga Hufflepuff, a daughter of Apollo. She was also the greatest medical witch to date, being able to cure even the most life-threatening injuries and diseases (that were known during her time) with just a wave of her wand.

Helga was currently trying to play peacemaker in the argument that was taking place between Salazar and Godric. They were arguing about what type of cheese tasted better: cheddar or cottage. No one bothered to point out that they didn't have bodies, and hence could not have possibly known the taste.

And where was the Fourth Founder, Rowena Ravenclaw, you may ask?

Why, she was the woman who owned the penthouse, and was switching on the TV. She was still alive because Hecate, the goddess of magic (amongst other things), had hired her as one of her servants, and was what she called to be a demi-immortal, i.e., she could still be killed, but she won't die due to natural causes.

The catch of this sugar-coated deal was that she had to remain a virgin. Of course, some might not consider this to be the bad thing.

Purity of the body was a requirement for a god/goddess to grant you agelessness. This was quite evident: most assumed that Artemis only gave such blessings to maidens. But there was a reason why she couldn't induct sexual assault victims or mothers with abusive husbands, etc., into her Hunters, and this was the reason. Artemis, by Ancient Law, could not grant them immortality, because their maidenhood, no matter how tragically, had been taken from them.

That was the same case with Rowena. She had to stay a virgin, or else she would be 'fired' and would become mortal again.

But it had gotten quite monotonous, given how the goddess was quite workaholic. So she had recently turned to praying to her mother for an opportunity to raise a child. It had been unanswered for the most part. Her contract with her Patron Goddess said that she could do so; as long as they were her own siblings. And besides, her job was only to help the Goddess connect better with her subjects, i.e., the wizards and witches. Not much to do there, except for to send a bi-monthly IM about how the wizarding world is faring.

And yes she had an actual physical contract that she signed with Hecate. Unlike Artemis, Hecate made her demi-immortal servants (or rather servant, given that she was the only one) sign contracts detailing their job, what they were allowed to do and what they were not, etc. It was just like a regular contract. The contract was signed by Hecate, the candidate who was to be her servant, and Zeus, as unlike Artemis Hecate did not put on an adorable expression before asking for such permission. Also Hecate was not, as she put it "a spoilt, sexist brat (sometimes)."

Except it was magically binding. Along with some parts being oaths on the Styx, like not abusing magic, not betraying Hecate and Olympus, and not changing pigs into dragons permanently. Rowena did not understand why the last one was even in the contract, much less an oath on the Styx.

Of course, some records say she had a daughter. But Helena was her mortal cousin's daughter, to whom Rowena was like a mother-figure.

"Cottage cheese is sooo much better!" Godric yelled from his portrait, snapping Rowena's attention to the two arguing pair.

"Screw you, Godric! Cheddar all the way!" Salazar retorted.

Rowena had enough; her show was about to begin. "Both of you...quiet" Her voice was deceptively calm. She was also giving them the patented Athena glare. Since she looked like a twin sister of her own mother, it worked wonders. The two portraits went silent. Helga smirked in hers.

"I will not have any sound come from the two of you during the next two hours. If you make single, and I mean a single sound, I will summon your souls and get... _imaginative_..." Rowena threatened.

Godric and Salazar gulped. The Son of Zeus may be the de-facto leader of the four, but he was deathly afraid of two, well three women: his mother, wife, and Rowena. Salazar was also the same, except the difference was that he never married. Either way, they did NOT want her to get imaginative. The last time that happened – when they had bodies – was when a son of Apollo tried to take her against her will. He was declared insane soon after to the point Dionysus wasn't able to make any heads or tails of his insanity (or so he claimed). He also had multiple seizures when any girl, or anything blue or silver was brought to his attention.

Such were the wonders of Runic Magic.

So when Rowena truly got angry, you might want to stand clear.

"So no more sounds for the next two hours, and if I watch this show in peace, I will–"

Athena chose that moment to flash in the room. The Founders disappeared in their portraits. In reality, they had simply gone to another part of the penthouse. Rowena's house had a large amount of portraits scattered throughout the area, and all were interconnected. In this manner, all three could visit any part of the penthouse (excluding bathrooms of course), without problems.

"–gods dammit mother..." Rowena finished before she noticed the sleeping baby in her mother's hands. "Is that my sibling?" Rowena asked. She was wishing with all her heart that she was going to raise him. Athena was not so evil as to show her desire to her before taking it away.

Okay, she would probably do that teach someone a lesson.

But Rowena had not earned such an action. That much she knew.

Athena smiled at her daughter, "Yes. He is. And as answer to your prayers, I am giving you the opportunity to raise him."

"Of course! I'd love to!" Rowena replied with a smile.

Athena handed her sleeping son to Rowena, "His name is Harry Potter, and yes, the last surviving member of the Potter household. I wish you luck," Athena said as Rowena placed her brother in a crib she had conjured. Athena then explained how he came to be, and why he was orphaned. Athena left shortly after, explaining how her father would notice her absence.

Just as Athena left, another flash illuminated the room. When the light died down, a handsome man who looked in his late teens or early twenties stood in the place of the flash. He had dark brown hair and startling green eyes, and a short stubble on his chin. This was Merlin, who was made a minor God of Magic due to his actions in subduing Hyperion when the Titan had awoken from slumber a millennium ago.

He was also wearing a fancy long flowing robe that one might expect a wizard such as Merlin to wear.

"Ah. So this is where he disappeared to," Merlin said, stroking his beard. "Mother was wondering where he is."

"Master Merlin..." Rowena greeted him. She could feel a headache coming, the source being the god in front of her. Merlin used to be a very wise and mature man. He was a wise, womanizing idiot as a god.

"Hello, Rowena. Glad to see you are alright. And thankfully Lady Athena has left... she keeps saying I have gone astray. And with that glare she keeps giving me makes things awkward," Merlin thought out loud.

"Why would a glare make things awkward?" Rowena questioned, rubbing her temples. Merlin used to be one of the most brilliant of researchers that studied magic. Since he had stopped doing so, Athena was understandably quite angry at him.

"Because it reminds of you when you're angry," Merlin said.

Rowena chose to ignore that. If it was one thing she hated, it was people commenting on how much she looked like her mother. It stemmed from a deep seated trauma of Hermes hitting on her once many, many years ago, believing her to be Athena. Even when she corrected the god, he doubled down instead of stopping.

"Why are you and Lady Hecate interested in my brother?" Rowena questioned, hoping to get more insight on him.

Merlin nodded, looking grave. "That terrorist, Volde-whatever, used the killing curse on him. He survived, by some miracle that even I don't know how. It shouldn't be possible, really."

Rowena raised a brow, eyes widening ever so slightly in surprise. "What? How?"

"I don't know," Merlin said. "I'll be back. I need to investigate this further and report this to mother."

Rowena sighed as he left, already making plans for her baby brother.

Salazar returned in the portrait he was in earlier, "Is your mother gone? I think she is still mad at me from the owl accident those many years ago." Then he noticed the baby. "And she left you a –"

"Call my baby brother names Salazar. I dare you."

Salazar gulped audibly, even though he was just a portrait. "So, uhhh, what's his name?"

"Harry Potter."

"That is a good, strong name," Godric commented, appearing besides Salazar. Helga appeared beside Godric, "And a Potter to boot. No doubt he will be powerful."

"Of course! He will be cunning like myself! Now how to ensure that Rowena here does not turn him into a nerd witho––"

Salazar's portrait was promptly silenced by Rowena.

* * *

It was another hour or two before Merlin returned.

He then explained to Rowena that Hecate was quite pleased to know that Harry was in her care. In fact, the entire Potter vault in Gringotts was being transferred to the Manhattan Branch, and the Goblin King was overseeing the transfer himself. There was not much he could say to a goddess's request (order) after all. The American Goblins had seen it as a better investment to open up branches in nearly every major city in USA.

Merlin had also gotten three boxes, two of which he explained that were the belongings of James and Lily Potter, and the third containing all of Harry's toys. Merlin left there after, to investigate why Harry had survived a curse that killed a human without exception.

Rowena sighed; it had been a long night. She then changed one of her rooms to a baby's room, complete with a crib and a small chandelier on top of the bed, around which were charmed glass owls that flew in circles.

She placed the sleeping form of Harry in his newly created bed, knowing full well her brother was destined for greatness.

After all, why would the Fates not cut his string even though he was hit with a sure-kill curse?


	2. Chapter 2

(Harry, age 12; Camp Half Blood; Summer of 2002)

Chiron looked at Harry with a interested look. "Tell me exactly what you dreamed of, Harry. Demigod dreams often have multiple messages embedded in them."

"Well…"

_The place was beyond beautiful. Lush green grass as far as the eyes could see. A clear blue sky, with mountains tipped with pure snow in the distance. There were animals frolicking about, and only one word came to mind as he saw the entire landscape._

_Paradise._

_"Come, Harry. Sit."_

_Harry's eyes widened as he noticed an old man who was sitting on the grass. He wasn't there before. He must have appeared out of nowhere. Harry reluctantly went and sat down beside him._

_"Relax, my boy. I am not here to hurt you. Do you know what this place is?"_

_Harry shook his head. "No. But it feels so… pure and full of hope. Untouched by anyone and anything. Are we in Elysium?"_

_The old man laughed. "No, child. This is not Elysium. This place is a 'What If'. It does not exist, yet many people seek it. They will never find this place, but the very idea that this exists warrants a try. Now, can you tell me why this place is not real?"_

_Harry looked at him, confused. He was here, was he not? How could he be in a place that is not real?_

_As if the old man had read his mind, he said, "Do not be confused with an idea given shape with reality. Remember what I told a moment ago?"_

_"Yes. This is a what if that… you mean this place was made real because of so many people sought it out that it became a reality?"_

_"Hmmm. Not exactly. This is an idea. You are partially correct, however. Because multiple people throughout history have sought this place out, it became a concept. A concept, that, by magic, can now potentially exist. However, all those who seek it out, may never find it. Can you tell me why?"_

_This time, Harry was silent for a long time. The old man did not rush him at all. "The people who sought this place. They were human?"_

_"Yes. Be it mortal, demigod, witch or wizard. Humans who came from all walks of life. From a commoner to royalty."_

_Harry once again thought some more. "It's because… this place is free of sin. I'm guessing only those who wished to find this place sought it out of selfishness. That is why they could not find it."_

_"Again, you are partially correct. Yes. This place is free of sin, as that is how the concept of 'paradise' can be defined. Even those who sacrifice their lives for others may never find paradise, as they may have sacrificed themselves not to save another, but rather to reach this point. Somewhere, they themselves may see this as a sin — killing yourself for a selfish goal despite saving another. And you are also correct that those that wanted to find this place did so out of selfishness. But… keep in mind what I told you about this place being a 'what if'."_

_Harry mulled the old man's words over. "I think I understand. They never found this place, because they themselves decided that they weren't worthy of it. You said that this place is a concept. The concept of paradise given form. If you subconsciously believe that you would not be able to go to paradise, then you would not be able to grasp this concept."_

_The old man laughed. He was not surprised by his insight, or his intelligence. Children of Athena weren't just intelligent, but they could also be wise beyond their age. It was speculated that her children absorbed her wisdom while they were in her mind, but it was just a speculation. "Exactly. Now. Knowing such, young hero, what do you plan to do? Will you also try and seek this concept?"_

_Harry smiled as he looked at the beautiful countryside. "No. But I think I understand. This was a test. You wanted me to understand this concept so that I could at least try to replicate it."_

_"Oh? And how do you plan to do so?"_

_Harry looked at him in the eye. "By finding out that life itself can be a paradise. That thought, is worth conceptualising."_

_Something about that look in the young boy's eyes reminded the old man about something, or accurately, someone._ 'Could it be… no, His line died out, unfortunately. He wasn't even related to the Potters. But they are similar in that idea.'

_"Very good. You do your mother proud by your display of wisdom. Hold out your hand."_

_Harry did so._

_The old man touched the back of his palm, and a symbol appeared on it. It was shaped like a sword, surrounded by runes that he didn't understand._

_"In time of your need, this symbol will give you the strength you need, should you prove that you are worthy of it. Don't worry, no one but you will able to see this symbol. Now. I believe that it's time for you to wake up."_

"And that is when I woke up." Harry said, as he narrated the dream to Chiron. Obviously, he didn't say anything about the old man's thoughts because he was not aware of them.

Chiron examined Harry's hand. As he said, Chiron could not see the symbol even after he tried to dispel the Mist.

"Harry. It seems a god has decided to test you. Can you draw that symbol for me? I may be able to recognize it."

Harry nodded, and Chiron gave him a paper and pencil. He drew the symbol, copying the runes from the back of his hand. Chiron examined the symbol, and his eyes widened for a brief second.

"You know this symbol, Chiron?"

Chiron looked at the boy. "Yes. But I'm afraid that if I reveal its purpose, I will be the reason why you will fail this trial. My advice is that just put it in the back of your mind. When the time is right, it will do its job. Oh, and don't mention about this to anyone, even Rowena. If my suspicion is correct, she may try to do something about it, and that may very well end up in failure."

Harry nodded. "Thank you, Chiron."

Chiron gave him a kind smile. "No problem, Harry. Now off you go to your lessons."

As soon as Harry ran off, Chiron's eyes narrowed in thought. He wondered what Merlin was playing at.

For the symbol that Harry had drawn was the Seal of Avalon.

* * *

A few days had passed since Harry had that dream. Like Chiron said, Harry didn't think of the symbol too often. He had not told about it to anyone, even his siblings.

But instead, his focus was currently on the new girl. She undoubtedly pretty, and had arrived at Camp just yesterday, brought in by a satyr. Her long black hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and her eyes were a brilliant blue. Or so he thought, as when he saw her again during lunch, she had brown eyes.

Currently she was with the Hermes Cabin, as her parent had not yet claimed her. Harry had his suspicions, as after being in Camp for the past four years — his sister first brought him here when he was eight — it allowed him to observe and note all the common traits among the various demigod families.

If he was right, then the new girl, Silena, was a daughter of Aphrodite. She certainly had the looks, and she was drawing stares from everyone around her. Sure, new demigods tended to get such a treatment. Every single person would try and guess who the new kid's parent was. There were betting pools, obviously hosted by the Hermes Cabin.

But what sold him on his guess was the accidental Charmspeak. She told a boy beside her to be quiet a little too firmly during dinner last night. That boy did not even make a single noise for at least an hour before the effect wore off.

"You are staring at me."

Her voice brought him out of his thoughts. He turned to her. Luke, the second-in-command of Hermes, had told him to help her adjust, given that they were both the same age. There weren't many twelve year old Campers, the average age being fourteen or fifteen. Currently they were sitting by the Canoe Lake, having walked around the Camp. Harry had given her another tour of the Camp, as it could be overwhelming for a new kid.

She appreciated the sentiment.

"Sorry. I got lost in thought. Tends to happen sometimes." Harry replied.

"Okay, but you were staring at me." She repeated. "Not just you, nearly everyone. It's making me uncomfortable."

Harry gave her what he felt was a reassuring smile. "It happens to every new kid. Till you get claimed, that is. Everyone is trying to guess your godly parent. There are even betting pools."

"Yes, the Hermes—"

"Messenger god. Don't use names unless you have no choice."

"As I was saying," Silena continued. "The Councillor said something like that. But he didn't say when."

Harry sighed. "The truth is, no one knows even if you'll get claimed. It can happen right now, in the next few weeks, or never."

Silena looked down, slightly miffed. "So… I may have to stay in thar cramped up Cabin all summer?"

Harry looked at her, surprised. That wasn't the usual reaction. "That is what bothers you? Not the whole 'not knowing my parent' thing?".

This time it was her turn to smile. "Well, not exactly. My mother was never around in my life, and daddy would go out of his way to ensure that I did not have to deal with not having a mother around. Wait. That came out wrong. What I meant is—"

"He never let you feel the loneliness of having just one parent?" Harry clarified.

"Yeah. Knowing my mother's identity would not change much, right?" Silena asked.

"Well, it would change where you live," Harry quipped.

"Apart from that."

"Well depends on who your mother is. Sometimes knowing our parent can strengthen our abilities." Harry said, going into lecture mode. "For example, a child of the Sun god may find that they are much better at archery than before they got claimed."

"Luke tells me that you've been here longer than most," Silena said, changing the subject. "You can probably guess right?"

Harry raised a brow. "You didn't care about your mother's identity until a second ago, but now you want me to guess?"

"For the most part, I still don't. But then you said that the thing I did last night could potentially get strengthened." Silena replied.

"You… did that intentionally?" Harry asked, surprised for a second time.

"Well no, but I noticed that he didn't even make a noise for a full hour just after I told him not to."

For a third time, Harry's interest in Silena grew.

"I… you are a really interesting girl you know?"

Silena blushed lightly. "What do you mean by that?"

Harry smiled. "You have a rather unique way of looking at your situation, and you are easily more observant than most people. That itself makes you rather interesting in my opinion."

Silena smiled back. "I think I like that opinion."

This time Harry blushed.

"But you still haven't told me about your guess." Silena pressed.

"Okay. The thing you did last night is most likely Charmspeak. It is most commonly seen in the children of the Love goddess, but can also manifest uncommonly in the children of the goddess of Magic." Harry lectured. "That makes my guess."

"So… Aphrodite or Hecate?"

Thunder rumbled as she said the names.

Harry gave her a look. "Didn't that orientation movie warn you about the dangers of naming ancient entities?"

"I just wanted to confirm if I remembered correctly." Silena countered. "I mean, I have a pretty good memory and that movie did explain quite a lot, but it was sooo boring! I had to fight to keep myself awake!"

Oh right. ADHD. It can a boon and a curse.

"Well. The thing is, it hurts their over-inflated egos if us unworthy mortals speak their names." Harry said. "That is why, monsters can easily find us that way."

Silena looked at him with narrowed eyes. "No way that's true. I mean, Mr. D may act like that, but I can't imagine that the others so easily insulted."

"Everyone has a unique story as to how they discovered what Mr. D is. What's yours?" Harry asked. He wasn't exactly surprised that she found out that Mr. D was Dionysius. It wasn't uncommon for the god to prove that he was one for the newcomers. Whether he did so intentionally or not was debatable.

"He conjured wine, turned it into water, before settling on Dr. Peppers."

Harry slumped his shoulders. "Well, that is a lot less interesting than what I expected."

"Well, excuse me for not making it interesting!" Silena said, faking her anger.

Harry put his hands up. "Hey, I was just! No need to be angry! Sorry!"

Silena giggled lightly. "I was just pulling your leg. So, how did you find out?"

"My sister told me. She was a camper a few years ago."

Silena glared at him. "That is a lot less interesting than mine!" She then paused. "Wait. Goddess of Magic? Magic exists?"

Harry raised a brow. "You just found out that gods exist, Olympus is currently at the top of Empire State, and you wonder if magic is real?"

Silena looked sheepish. "Well, I mean, her children would not be street performers, right?"

Harry sighed. This was going to be a long conversation. The magical community was hidden from mundanes, yes, but demigods were another story. But Rowena didn't raise a quitter. So, he hunkered down and explained the magical world to the girl, even demonstrating a few spells — mostly levitation and summoning — to the very impressed girl.

"So, you go to this Ilver-whatever?"

Harry shook his head. "Well, my sister is the Education Head of the ICW, the magical version of the UN, so pulled some strings and ensured that I'd be homeschooled without any problems pertaining to my magical education. She is a lot more powerful and better than every teacher in Ilvermorny."

Silena wondered if that was an exaggeration, but didn't comment on it. "But why?"

"Because they haven't updated their syllabus since the 1920's. My sister is trying her best to get them to change that, but the school board won't listen. At present, they are at risk of losing their schooling liscense with the ICW if this continues." Harry explained, but it was a lot shorter than the actual story.

Ilvermorny had students from the entirety of North America. Sure, Rowena practically ensured that MACUSA didn't subscribe to the whole Pureblood nonsense, but that didn't mean that things were perfect. First, she herself acted a bit too late, mostly because she wasn't in North America till 1960. She was in Uganda, where she helped establish the Uagadou school. She was the reason why it was popular for its wandless magic.

The people in power still had their roots in families of wizards who went back generations, having migrated to North America from Europe. They were stubborn and set in their ways, and only changing their laws to give first generation wizards and witches a fair chance at well, everything, were introduced in the late seventies.

Harry, however, didn't mention any of this Silena, as he felt it would complicate things, and she had just been introduced to the magical world. There was only so much she could take in at a time.

"So, what else can magic do?"

Harry smiled as he noticed a blonde teen pass by. "Want to see Luke dance like a ballet dancer? Cause I can—"

Luke turned, glaring at Harry. "Oh don't you dare make me do that again! My toes are still killing me!"

Harry laughed when Silena asked, "What do you mean again?"

The first time was to entertain Annabeth when she was crying because of her trauma. Luke agreed that it was a justifiable thing to do, but hated that Harry had used him instead of literally anyone else.

* * *

The past few years had not fared well for Dumbledore. After it became apparent that Harry Potter was never with the Dursleys, he had devoted quite a bit of time to try and locate him, but to no avail. When it came time for him to join Hogwarts, Dumbledore had hoped that the Hogwarts letter would find out where he is.

Except Hogwarts never sent out a letter, and he had to deal with the press and the government about their missing hero. Dumbledore had managed to placate them by stating that Harry being trained in elsewhere, but did not say where or why. He was rather good at avoiding questions, and had used that experience to help him.

Personally to Dumbledore, it didn't matter that Harry was missing. The prophecy that was given by Trelawny could also apply to Neville Longbottom, and he had proved so by stopping Quirrel. Well, stalling Quirrel until Dumbledore arrived to save the day.

In all honesty, putting an end to Voldemort was Dumbledore's first and foremost priority. Whether Harry does it or Neville does it did not matter to him. He knew that Voldemort was still very much alive, and if Harry had died, no matter how unfortunate that may be, it only meant that Voldemort had one less soul piece in this world.

However, Neville was still very much a meek and shy boy, no doubt because of his grandmother. Dumbledore knew he would have to do something about it and soon. Augusta Longbottom was like most people of her generation: stubborn and headstrong. She only listened to herself, and generally disregarded anyone else's opinions.

Severus Snape's behaviour towards Neville didn't really help. The professor would go out of his way to put Neville down, and this caused the boy to become even more nervous and jittery around Snape. Dumbledore had told Snape to tone it down, but Snape for the most part, had not.

Dumbledore inwardly groaned. Why couldn't Harry Potter have come to Hogwarts like he was supposed to?

* * *

Chiron raised his hand. "Athena-Hermes-Demeter-Dionysius Cabins win this game of Capture-the-Flag."

The remaining cabins groaned in disappointment, but even that was forgotten when the victory party kicked off. At the end of the day, it didn't really matter who won, the party usually included everyone. Mostly because the victors' prize was almost always extra desserts or less chores on the weekends. Add to the fact that there were very few sore losers in the Camp as a whole, the party was what the main attraction was on Fridays.

Harry sat by himself, well, with his snowy white owl as everyone was mingling, dancing, or in case of a few Hermes cabin members, drinking some beer that they smuggled in.

"You were invaluable today, Hedwig," Harry said as the owl nibbled on her treats. Harry's bead necklace — having four beads — sat on her neck. She didn't acknowledge her master's compliment. Of course she was invaluable. But she was invaluable every day. She was utterly confused as to why her master had told her so right now.

"That is a beautiful owl."

Harry looked at Silena as she joined him. "Don't say that. Her ego is already huge."

Hedwig glared at her master before she turned back to her treats. Stupid master. Her ego wasn't huge at all.

"So, any reason why you're not mingling? I mean your brother Rahul is practically bragging about you." Silena asked.

Harry smiled. Rahul Kumar, his older half-brother and Cabin Councillor. He was a tad bit eccentric and liked to boast about how great his younger siblings are. Often times it got on people's nerves. "Well, I am mingling with the MVP of today. Hedwig was keeping watch on the enemy movements and informing me, which allowed me to tell Ashley what to do."

Rahul wasn't the best strategist. He had inherited the crafts and arts side of Athena rather than her more war-like side. So, he deferred the battle strategy to his other two siblings — Ashley Franklin, who was three years older than Harry and about ten months younger than Rahul, and Harry himself. Between the two, Ashley had the higher authority because of her age.

Hedwig for her part, once again ignored her master's compliment. She was the MVP everyday. Her idiot master should stop stating the obvious.

"Ohh. Does the MVP have a name," Silena asked, as she looked at Hedwig. Silena didn't question how Hedwig was telling him. She knew that Harry was a son of Athena, and therefore, would have a connection with owls. That, and his magic must have allowed him to talk to the owl telepathically. At least, that is what she deduced.

"Hedwig. Named after the inventor/actress Hedwig Lamarr." Harry said.

"I don't know who that is. May I pet her?" Silena asked.

"Well, she's eating her beloved treats, so don't. She bites when people approach her when she's eating."

Hedwig hooted and went back to eating.

"No, Hedwig, those are meant for owls. We are humans and we don't want them." Harry replied.

Hedwig hooted again.

"You are an idiot."

This time Hedwig hooted angrily, turning her head away from him in anger, as if she was pouting.

Silena giggled as she saw them interact. "She can understand you, right?"

Harry nodded. "Well, she can understand everyone. She is particularly smart. Sometimes for her own good."

Hedwig was still doing the owl version of pouting.

"I'm guessing that she's angry with you?" Silena asked. "If so, you should apologise."

Harry looked at her. "Wha—don't take her side! That's what she wants! She is very manipulative!"

Hedwig turned to Silena and gave her a stare.

"But look at those eyes, Harry! How can you stay mad at that!"

Harry grumbled, giving Silena a side-long stare. "You are doing this on purpose aren't you?"

Silena played dumb. "I don't know what you mean."

"Right."

* * *

(Harry age 13, Camp Half Blood, Winter of 2003)

It was a very sad day.

Harry was vaguely aware of Ashley's hand on his shoulder as she pulled him into a side-hug. Annabeth was on the other side, her head buried in Ashley's side. They, along with the rest of the remaining campers present, watched the fire as it consumed the silver shroud, and the body of Rahul Kumar.

When he would look back on this day, Harry would say that despite his excellent memory, he would not be able to recall Chiron's eulogy. This was the first time someone this close to him had been killed. Well, his parents not withstanding.

Rahul was always the very best person. He would go out of his way to ensure that his fellow Campers, not just his siblings, were cared for. Given his penchant for craft, he would create personalized birthday gifts for everyone at Camp by hand. But he wasn't a fighter.

Despite this, Rahul did not hesitate even for a moment as he pushed a fellow demigod — who was coming to the Camp for fhe first time — out of a Lystrigonian Giant's attack, taking the blow head on. The Lystrigonian had been following the demigod and his satyr protector, only catching up as they neared Camp.

Rahul had sacrificed himself for a complete stranger, with little to no regard for his own life. Sure, they killed the giant, but the damage was done.

_Even those who sacrifice their lives for others may never find paradise..._

Harry shook his head. The old man from his dream was not correct. Rahul had found his paradise. It was Camp Half Blood. And not just Camp. Every single person in Camp. Demigod, satyrs, the dryads… that was 'paradise' to him. He had decided that they were more than his own life. And he had stuck to that.

He was a hero, and not just because he was born to a goddess. Rahul had shown that you don't need much to be a hero.

"Sorry, I want to be alone for a while," Harry whispered as he shook himself out of Ashley's grasp. She simply nodded. Rahul was the Councillor when Harry had joined Camp. Even she did not know her older brother as much as Harry, having joined two years ago.

Harry ran into the forest that surrounded the Camp. There was a special place he had found a long time ago near Zeus's Fist, where the natural large rocks resembled stools. There was nothing else, but it was special to him. This was his private place, where he would usually go to clear his mind.

He sighed, sitting down on a rock. For the most part, he ignored the tears on his cheeks. He for a change, did not know how to deal with his sadness. A part of him told him to go to Rowena, and another told him to go to Chiron. Yet another thought told him to stay here.

"There you are. I was worried."

Harry turned to see Chiron, a kind look on his face.

"You just ran off, Harry. I understand that you hurting. But in times like these, you can't afford to be alone." Chiron said as he sat down, rather awkwardly, on a rock beside Harry.

Harry looked at the centaur. He knew that more than anyone, Chiron knew exactly what was going on within Harry. "It just hurts..." Harry muttered.

Chiron placed a hand on his back to comfort him. "I know, child. But Rahul would not want you to hurt."

"Does… does it get better?" Harry asked softly.

Chiron sighed. "I won't lie, Harry. You and your siblings tend to have excellent memories, but it can be a curse. You most likely won't ever forget this pain. But that doesn't mean that it won't go away. And you will always remember your brother as he was in his entirety, just as he would want to be remembered."

Harry looked down. "He hated myths that exaggerated the truth..."

"Indeed. Now come, child. It's getting dark. We should head back."

"Chiron... Remember what I told you about my dream last year? About the old man and his paradise?"

Chiron nodded.

"This… was Rahul's paradise. Not just Camp, but also everyone living in Camp. Why did he throw it away?"

Chiron sighed again. "He did not throw it away, my boy. He simply ensured that every single aspect of his paradise, like you put it, will be continue to exist. Like you said, this was his paradise. And often, a paradise is worth dying for."

"Can... Can this world be the same?"

Chiron's words were very reminiscent of his own from his dream.

"Who knows? But the thought at least warrants a try to make it so, does it not?"


	3. Chapter 3

(Harry age 14, August of 2004)

Harry had arrived at the Camp almost three weeks later than his usual date, and in the late afternoon, at almost four. Rowena had decided to up his magical training, and slowly move towards wandless magic. After all, against monsters and any other godly threat, a piece of wood wasn't going to suffice.

When she had decided that he had reached an adequate enough level for her liking, she had dropped him off. Rowena had not stopped by this time around for long, having a few work emergencies in the ICW. And given his sister's high-to-the-point-of-impossible-to-reach standards, it could be said that he could do most spells wandless. And she had given him the 'homework' of conjuring a patronus wandless as well. If he managed a corporeal one, then she was taking him to Universal Studios.

(Harry did not know that Rowena had already bought the tickets and she was going to take him regardless)

"I was worried that you weren't coming this year," Ashley stated as she welcomed Harry inside Cabin Six. She ruffled his hair playfully, making him glare at her. "Aww wook at that widdle gware, is he mad?"

"Stop that!" Harry said as he wrestled out her grasp. Ashley merely smirked. She loved to tease her siblings. Of course, it was all in good fun.

That fun lasted only a mere second as his gaze turned to a specific section of the Cabin. Ashley, too, gained a sad look. "I tidied up the whole place… but I did not know what to do with his stuff. Chiron took them and had them framed. They are all down in the basement… it was too depressing."

Rahul's bed and all of his works, the tapestries, paintings, and the other literary works were no longer there. Well, the bed itself was, but it had been stripped down of its identity.

Harry looked down, his eyes not meeting his older sibling's. "He'd probably won't care if it somehow benefited us…" he muttered softly.

Ashley smiled as well. "I know.. But enough of that. Your girlfriend keeps asking when you will return you know!"

Harry blushed hotly. "I don't have a girlfriend!"

Ashley's grin returned. "Really? I could have sworn otherwise, given how much time you spent with Silena last summer."

"We're just friends!"

Ashley wrapped her arm around Harry's neck, giving him a noogie. "By the way, I'm proud of you, li'l bro, going after them Aphrodite girls! And even before she got claimed, that was an amazing strategy. Now she can't use the ol' you're just approaching me because of my mother card when you ask her out!"

Harry once again wrestled himself out her grasp. "And I keep telling you that she's just a friend!"

"She better be," said a ten year old Annabeth who narrowed her eyes at her brother. She was standing in the doorway for who knows how long. The three of them were the only children of Athena at the moment. Who knows, they might just get another sibling this summer, or the winter, or anytime in between.

Ashley barked out a laugh. "That's cuuuute! Annie is possessive of her older brother! Come here you!"

Annabeth yelped as it was her turn to be manhadled by their sister. "Hey! Let me go! Leggo!"

"You can't escape from me, Annie!"

Harry smiled at the display. Ashley would probably never reveal this side of her to anyone else. It was quite hard to believe that she was born from Athena the War Goddess when she let her hair down, so to speak. Figuratively, of course, given that she wore her blonde hair at shoulder length. Otherwise she was cold, methodical and was generally the Camp's Ice Queen. But this was her in the 'big sister' mode, which meant that she was a lot more free and open.

"So anything else that is new?" Harry asked.

Ashley placed her hand on Annabeth's head, ruffling her hair, as the younger girl pouted. "Well… Luke is out on some quest with Peter and Laura. They left last week. Apparently it was given to him by his own father. Apart from that, it's the same old. And a newbie, Clarisse or something, came three days ago."

Harry nodded. Peter was the Hermes Counsellor and Laura was an Undetermined. Harry could see why Luke took her. Perhaps one successful quest and she would probably get claimed. His personal bet was Apollo, given she was highly skilled in archery.

Harry did wonder what Hermes wanted with Luke, if the rumor about the quest being from the god was true.

It was probably nothing. All of them were quite skilled. Harry was sure that they'd be fine.

"In any case, it's almost time for melee exercises, and I have the arena booked till 5:30. Let's go!" Ashley said as Harry gulped. Not even five minutes at Camp and he was going to get his ass kicked, probably.

Harry sidestepped, dodging the spear entirely. He brought his sword — a standard issue Camp Practice Sword — down on Ashley, who quickly blocked it using her spear.

"Learn to read my movements. You are good with swords, but the spear has a longer range and it easily allows me to keep you at bay." Ashley lectured as they sparred. Of course, both weapons were blunted to avoid accidents. Chiron insisted on blunt weapons during spars ever since a son of Ares went berserk during practice and killed three Campers. Apparently it happened in the 15th century.

Harry nodded, going for a feint. Ashley easily saw through it, sweeping him off his feet. Harry grunted as he was knocked down, Ashley's spear at his throat.

"Nice try, but I could see it a mile away."

Harry nodded. He took her hand to lift himself up when she offered it. "Now review your mistakes. The most obvious being you still have to learn to read your foe."

Harry would have pointed out that that there weren't many people who could match their thinking speed and ability to come up with multiple strategies within a couple of precious seconds. Or the fact that Ashley's fighting style incorporated her fast thinking and she picked out weaknesses in her opponents faster than a speeding bullet. But Ashley was in her 'trainer' mode, and any back talking meant that she would kick his ass with extreme prejudice. So, he simply nodded.

That, and he wasn't allowed to use magic in these spars. He could see the reason, given that most, if not all, monsters had a highly magic-resistant skin. Or scales or whatever they had. It not only depended on the species of monsters but from individual to individual within that species as well. They could be wounded or slowed to a certain extent by elemental magic, but they could not be killed.

Therefore, it was largely in his best interest to hone his skill with the blade. Unfortunately, that also meant that he could not show Ashley the newer methods that he had learned from Godric in this particular spar. The legendary wizard was a master of combat magic and had given Harry plenty of pointers on how to utilise even First year spells to turn the tide to his advantage.

"I wanna fight too!" said a brash voice.

The two siblings turned to see a muscular girl, having stringy brown hair and brown eyes, and a mean look on her face. She looked about Harry's age, maybe a year younger or older.

Ashley looked at her coolly. "You are the new girl… Clarisse, yes?"

"Yeah. What's it to you?" Clarisse said, rather rudely.

Harry winced. Ashley did not tolerate rudeness. She was no stickler for rules, but it was generally a bad idea to talk rudely about anything, even the things she hated, to her.

"This arena, till five thirty, is booked by Cabin Six. You should come back, preferably after, with a sparring partner." Ashley stated, her voice calm and cool. She never glared at anyone, but her ice cold gaze was scarier than the patented Athena glare in Harry's opinion.

"But I wanna fight now!" Clarisse stood her ground.

Harry quietly made his way out of the arena. Ashley had officially entered into War Goddess mode.

Annabeth chose this moment to arrive, bringing a couple of water bottles. Ashley turned to her sister, "Annie, what took you so long? I told you to run to the Big House and back. It should not have taken more than three minutes and forty seconds. You took five."

Annabeth gulped. Her task of bringing water bottles was also a part of the training. She had to sprint to the Big House, get the water, and sprint back. She was timed every day. The time Ashley mentioned was her time yesterday. It wasn't as if she was supposed to be faster each time, but rather she was supposed to be consistent.

"Mr. D had changed the water to Coke and it took Chiron to convince him to change it back." Annabeth said. At least it was not her fault.

Ashley sighed. "That can't be helped then. The—"

"Stop ignoring me in favor of that half-pint! Let's fight!"

Ashley closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. Even Annabeth was scared now, seeing her older sister seethe in anger. Well, she was scared for the newbie.

"You know something, newbie? You clearly haven't been… initiated." Ashley said as she turned her ice cold gaze at Clarisse, who was still oblivious to her anger. "It's a lesser known Camp tradition, meant for rude little girls. You want to fight? Come then. Let me initiate you."

Clarisse grinned at the older girl, entering the arena. "I will make you eat your words!"

Ashley shook her head, pointing to the various practice weapons that were kept to the side, away from the arena. "Pick your weapon. Any weapon. It definitely won't protect you."

Clarisse picked up another spear, weighing it in her hands. She then moved into the arena.

"…and that is why Clarisse is in the infirmary. To be honest, Ashley should have stopped when she broke Clarisse's spear," Harry explained to Chiron as the centaur looked at Clarisse's unconscious form. To be fair, she wasn't knocked unconscious by Ashley. The medicine Chiron had given her to help the pain from her injuries had.

Chiron turned to look at Ashley. "Anything to add?"

"She should not have called Annie a half-pint."

Chiron rubbed his forehead. This wasn't the first time such an incident had happened — a lot of Campers tended to beat others black and blue and even to the point of unconsciousness when someone insulted their siblings. Ashley herself had done so only once before, accidentally during a CTF last summer when she saw Rahul getting knocked down by a Hephaestus camper. She was fiercely protective of her siblings, and Chiron feared that this protectiveness had increased since her predecessor's passing.

Perhaps he should start calling her in for some counselling.

"Ashley, you can't just beat a thirteen year old girl because she said something mean to your sister," Chiron said. "You wanted to punish her, that I can understand. But the punishment should fit the crime, and not go overboard. As such, I am relieving you of your duties as Counsellor for one week. And, if you don't tell me what you could have done better in that situation within the week, it will be permanent. Am I clear?"

Ashley simply nodded. "Yes sir."

Harry looked at Chiron. "But I don't think that I am fit for suc—"

"Harry," Ashley cut in. "You are. In more ways than one. And the role will go to you one day."

Harry sighed and nodded. Even if there was a sibling of theirs who was older than Harry who would come to Camp, the role of Counsellor would still fall to Harry given that he had stayed in Camp for the longest amount of time. In fact, he was supposed to be Counsellor after Rahul, but had let Ashley take the position as he did not think himself worthy of taking his older brother's position.

"Don't worry, Harry," Chiron assured him. "I have full confidence that you will do fine for the week." He then turned to Ashley. "This goes without saying, but guide your brother."

Ashley nodded, as did Harry. "Thank you," Harry said.

Chiron waved them off, turning back to Clarisse. At least Ashley was careful enough not to break anything. The most serious injury was just a large black and blue area on her right hand where she was hit with the shaft of the spear. No broken bones, no major breaks in the skin, and minimal bleeding, be it internal or external. All of it was reversible, and would probably heal within a couple of days on ambrosia and nectar therapy.

"I thought you would have spoken up against Chiron," Harry said as they walked towards the Dining Pavillion. It was almost dinner time.

Ashley shook her head. "He was correct. I let my anger get the better of me. That, and always know what battles to fight. There was no scenario where any argument against Chiron would have let me come out as the victor. Sometimes it is better to swallow your pride and accept the fact that you were wrong."

Harry felt that Salazar would have disagreed with that. He didn't voice it, as Ashley had no idea who Salazar was, given that she was a regular demigod and not a magical one. "Now then… does this mean that I get the extra dessert? Given that I am now the Counsellor?"

Ashley gave him a side-long look. She always claimed the extra dessert, as in the left over piece that everyone fought over, on the basis of her being the Counsellor. She threatened him playfully: "I may not win against Chiron, but I can most definitely win against you."

"I know. But why did you say that the role will go to me one day? I mean, I already know it will, that is just the way things work, right?"

Ashley sighed. "Harry, I may be leaving this summer."

Harry looked at in her surprise. "Whaa—but why?"

Given that her father was a Colonel in the United States Air Force, and on active duty, Ashley was a year rounder. Annabeth being very young and she would be by herself otherwise also had helped in her decision to be a year rounder.

"I got accepted at MIT. Their letter came yesterday. I still have some time to decide if I want to go."

"That's wonderful! Congratulations!" Harry said ecstatically. Then he noticed her reluctance. "Wait. Why are you hesitating?"

"I don't want to leave Annie here by herself. She is barely eleven. You are here for the summer and winter, but what about in between? Who's going to look out for her?" Ashley asked.

Harry looked at her. "I could try to convince sis to let me stay over the year? Or we can ask Luke to let her stay at Hermes? I am sure that we can come up with something! It's literally a huge opportunity for you! Many people, both demigods and mortals, would kill to be in your spot!"

Ashley smiled softly. "I know, Harry. This is why I'm confused. I don't want anything or anyone to affect you two. Not after... last winter."

Harry glared at her, which surprised her. He never glared at her. As in, there was actual anger in that glare. "Don't throw it away for us! I'm sure even Annie will be on my side! I'll say it again! You have a once in a lifetime opportunity!"

"We'll see. I still have some time to decide, remember?"

The next morning was a bit of a downer. Mr. D had decided to let the rain into the Camp for some reason and boy was it pouring. The rain pretty much meant that the usual morning exercise of canoeing was cancelled. Luckily the rain had started after breakfast.

Harry was instead in the infirmary, having gone there to check up on Clarisse.

"What do you want, Pretty Boy?" Clarisse said with a snarl as she saw him. She was much better, and Chiron had told her that she would be discharged by the evening.

"The name's Harry, Harry Potter. I just wanted to apologise for my sister. She is too proud to do it herself, so—"

"Don't. I won't accept it. Not until I kick her ass." Clarisee glared.

"You are here because of that," Harry pointed out.

"Yeah. And that just makes me want to kick her ass. She's strong and a good fighter."

Harry looked at her in surprise. He expected some insults, not compliments. "You sound like you admire her."

Clarisse nodded. "Like I said, she's strong. I'm gonna beat her ass one day. And I'm gonna do it fair and square, like she beat mine. And before that, I'm going to kick your ass for apologising, Pretty Boy."

"I have a name, you know?"

"Yes. And you are a Pretty Boy."

They were interrupted when Silena barged in, dripping in water from head to toe. "There you are! Did you forget that I exist?! You came back here yesterday and didn't even find me?!" She glared at Harry.

Harry raised his hands in surrender. "No, but there was a lot going on yesterday and—"

"And then I hear that your sister beat up a good friend of mine, and sent her to the infirmary! And you didn't even try to stop her! What sort of a friend are you?!"

"Good morning, Silena!" Clarisse said in amusement.

Harry turned to Clarisse, "Wait, she gets called by name but I'm not?"

"That is because she didn't piss me off." Clarisse blew a raspberry. Silena had helped her acclimatize and settle in, and the two had hit it off.

Silena marched up to him, "Listen here, Potter. You have ten seconds to explain why didn't you even ask for me yesterday! I waited for three weeks!"

"Ummm, err," Harry said smartly, suddenly aware of her beautiful face and her clear blue eyes. A small blush rose on his cheeks. And the fact that she was completely wet from the rain.

Silena turned around in anger, marching outside again.

"Go after her, Pretty Boy," Clarisse said after a tense silence. "She obviously missed you. I am sure that she'll come around."

"You sure? She did sound very angry..." Harry muttered.

Clarisse grinned. "Yeah I'm sure! Go get her before she gets angrier! I'm sure that she isn't that angry."

"Well, if you say so." Harry replied, leaving after Silena after waving goodbye.

Clarisse shook her head in amusement. "Boys. Always so dense."

Harry quickly caught up with Silena, and it took him a few minutes to calm her down.

Clarisse was right, she wasn't that angry, but a bit hurt that he hadn't sought her out yesterday. That was totally his fault, and he owned up to it.

After calming her down, the two of them sat down underneath a tree, where Harry used a wandless spell to dry both of them, and another one that repelled the rain drops from them. He could probably hold that spell for an hour at best.

"So… how is the new Cabin?" Harry asked after a small silence.

"Pink. So very pink," Silena replied. "Don't get me wrong, I like pink. But there's a limit to how much pink I can tolerate."

"I meant how are your siblings. They can be… gossip-y."

Silena chuckled. "Yeah, they are. You won't believe the rumors about us."

Harry blushed. "I heard some of them."

Silena grinned at him, "Like what?" She was enjoying this. Harry was fun to tease.

"Uhh, this and that," Harry said, not meeting her eyes. Obviously he didn't want to tell her that his sister had called her his girlfriend. That would no doubt make it very awkward between them. He did disregard the rumors on the Aphrodite end. They always tended to go overboard.

Also, they had been making rumors about Harry since the last two years. If he talked to any girl not from his own cabin for more than five minutes then a rumor would start.

It was annoying.

Silena, for her part, decided to drop this issue — if you could even call it one — for now. "Oh, and for one whole week I was badgered on how Mom loves me, and I should not feel bad that she took one full year to acknowledge me and all that."

"Do you? Feel bad, I mean."

Silena shook her head. "I told you last year, remember? I don't particularly care."

Harry frowned. "Well, she did take a full year to claim you...and you have no resentment for that?"

"That doesn't surprise me. Dad always gets angry and sad when I ask about mom. As I grew older I realised that they probably split up with bad terms. Now I know that she's a goddess, and a Goddess of Love at that. Maybe the resentment was also on her end. Maybe not. But hard to hate her on one action, even when I have never even met her."

"You really have interesting opinions about our parents." Harry muttered to her.

"Thanks," she beamed. "Although I suppose the only resentment is the damned pink. Can't we repaint the Cabin?"

Harry smiled in amusement. "You'd need to talk to Chiron, who'd then put a request to Olympus, which would probably go through to the interested party, in this case your mother, in the next couple of years, maybe centuries. Then it would be entirely up to your mother to decide."

Silena moaned in disappointment. "Really? That is some BS!"

"Tell me about it. My sister, I mean the one who is my guardian, tells me that she once wanted to expand the size of the beds but that request still shows as 'pending'" Harry didn't tell her that Rowena had filed it in her second year at the Camp, in the year 985 A. D., when the Camp Half Blood wasn't even called Camp Half Blood.

"Wait. Where's that beautiful owl?" Silena asked. Then she added, "Oh right, it's day time."

Harry chuckled. "Hedwig's a Snowy Owl, a diurnal type of owl. But she's catching up on her beauty sleep. Either that, or she's getting pampered by Annie. She spoils her."

"Annabeth spoils Hedwig or does Hedwig spoil Annabeth?" Silena asked in amusement.

"Yes." Harry replied.

They both laughed at that.

It was almost September when Luke returned.

To the horror of the entire Camp, he had returned alone, and was sporting a scar on his face. He explained that Ladon had killed his older brother, Peter, and the girl he considered a sister, Laura. He was extremely depressed, to the point where not even Annabeth could get his mind off things, and even more angry at his father.

Chiron had told everyone to give him time and space, that he'll come around eventually.

For nearly three days Luke was in such a state. Then he seemed to return to normal. However, despite Chiron telling him to do so, he never came to the Centaur for much needed therapy regarding his trauma.

Given that Sigmund Freud, along with quite a few psychiatrists, were once Chiron's students, he knew quite a lot about the psyche and how to help with trauma, having learned from them. Chiron considered that a very important aspect to his role as a trainer of heroes, especially given that quite a lot of them experienced loss in some form or other.

Chiron found it a tad bit suspicious as to how Luke bounced back. True, everyone dealt with trauma differently and there were some who hid it a lot better than others. But given his history, there was no reason to believe that Luke should have recovered this quickly. He had a huge amount of anger and frustration with Hermes, generally hated the gods, but was loyal to his friends and siblings.

Luke would not have been okay with his current mindset in just three days. And now, Chiron felt as if Luke wasn't even trusting him. Either way, Chiron decided to give Luke the benefit of the doubt. He could just be hiding it, and Chiron was sure that Luke would be fine with him eventually.

Luke simply needed to mourn.

Harry, for his part, couldn't help but notice that Luke's resentment towards his father had grown substantially. He didn't approach or confront Luke with it. As someone who had lost a sibling, Harry also knew that he was hurting. Perhaps it was nothing more than Luke wanting to blame someone and had found an easy target in Hermes.

Even Harry wanted to blame something or someone for Rahul's death. There were even moments where he caught himself thinking that the demigod for whom Rahul gave his life for — the currently Undetermined Lee Fletcher — should never have come to Camp. Rowena, and to a large extent even Godric and Helga (Salazar was muted for this to his chagrin) had helped him grow out of that highly toxic mentality.

Harry decided that very moment that once he was completely sure that Luke had calmed down and was moving on, he would do the same to Luke, and help him let go, or at least, curb his hatred.


	4. Chapter 4

(6th June 2006)

The past six months had a very erratic weather. Thunderstorms and rains everywhere. The sea was also acting bizarre, with random high and low tides, unpredictable turbulent waters and the like.

To the outside world, this was probably a storm brewing. To demigods, they disregarded it for the most part, chalking it up to the two Olympian brothers fighting for some or the other reason.

"Clever," Chiron said as he moved his bishop to block a future check. "But you are sure that the same old man appeared in your dream?"

Harry nodded, capturing Chiron's bishop with his queen. "Yes. He simply said that my trial awaits me at the land that rejects my kind. What did he mean by that?"

Chiron thought about his next move while he answered. "Why don't you tell me what you derived from that?"

"Well, 'my kind' can refer to me being a human, male, demigod, mage or alive. I… can't seem to think of anything that outright rejects humans or mages or demigods," Harry answered. "Only the Underworld would reject the living, but then again, there are multiple stories and ways for a living being to enter and exit the Underworld."

"And I'm assuming that you left the male part out because that can, technically, refer to the Hunters' Camp of Artemis or the land of the Amazons. Though the later does not exactly reject males," Chiron said. He moved his rook forward, placing it for a future check, but it would depend on what Harry did next. The rook could also capture Harry's knight.

Harry nodded. He made his play. "Exactly."

"Difficult, yes," Chiron stated, referring to the chess game and Harry's problem. "But I suppose that it can wait for now. Especially if you have no set deadline. Olympus isn't exactly peaceful right now."

"No, I think there is no set deadline, but it would be rude to make him wait. And yes, the weather and the sea have been disturbed ever since our field trip." Harry said. Chiron nodded, and captured Harry's queen. To his credit, Harry did not seem to be bothered by it.

"I am not surprised that it didn't miss your notice. The King and his brother have been fighting ever since. I'm not supposed to reveal why, however." Chiron said. If word got out that the Master Bolt was stolen, then there would be panic, and it would only prompt the Olympus' enemies to act.

Perhaps the Great Prophecy was coming to pass. Although Chiron won't even say that out loud.

Harry smirked. "Hmmm. Let's see. The two of them have been fighting for six months. That tells me that whatever happened was more serious than a simple 'mother likes me more' debate and one of them did something that well and truly offended the other. No outright confrontations yet, and none of us have been even contacted by our parents to call for a war, which tells me that an ultimatum has been issued. This further implies that the conflict did not arise out of the King not being able to keep it in his toga. But what did happen?"

Chiron sighed. "All of it is true. And I just told you that I can't reveal what happened."

Harry's smirk didn't let up. In fact, it widened. He moved his pawn further towards Chiron's end. "Ah, but then here's something that is important but I don't see how it fits. Your house-call to the kid in the infirmary. He's not a run-of-the-mill demigod if you had to go yourself to scope him out. Either his godly side is dominating his non-godly side, or he's one of the Big Three. His presence here, along with the Minotaur attack is no coincidence, especially if it is the later than the former."

Chiron chuckled. "I did not expect a rookie mistake like yours, Harry," he said as his only bishop captured Harry's pawn that was one move away from a Promotion.

"No, that was a rookie move," Harry said as he moved his rook upwards. "And this is a checkmate."

Chiron's eyes widened. "Ahh, I see. You purposely let me capture your queen and all the while you moved your pawn forward and forward, but had already moved your knights and rook into position. Then you made it look like you were going for a Promotion. And I fell for it. Good game, well played."

Harry smiled. "Thank you. In all fairness I didn't think that it would work. Sis saw through a queen sacrifice back home."

"Rowena will deny this, but I'm quite certain that your mother cloned herself when she was born." Chiron said jokingly.

"I guess," Harry replied. "But what do I do about my dream? Go to the Oracle?"

Chiron's expression turned a bit grim. "You could, always. But there's a reason why it lays in the Attic. You may not be the same person when you return."

Harry was silent for a time. "I suppose I will have to take that risk."

"If you do, then please, do not dwell much should the Oracle issue a prophecy."

Harry nodded as he headed to the Attic.

Chiron sighed as he packed up the chess board and the pieces. Playing with Harry was always a delight, especially as they always kept each other on their toes. He doubted that the Oracle would give Harry a prophecy. Most assumed that Oracles solely existed to predict the future and give prophecies, but one of their duties was also to simply point the way or even to provide counsel.

* * *

It was quite chilly in the Attic, despite the fact that it was a hot summer day outside. There were multiple artifacts, weapons and even the odd trophy lying around, but none of that interested Harry.

He walked towards the back, where a mummified body lay, seemingly lifeless. It was slumped over, propped up on an old, dusty stool.

If he remembered his lessons correctly, and of course Harry did, all he had to do was ask. Then await a response, should the Oracle choose to do so.

"Where is the land that rejects my kind?" Harry asked.

For a couple of seconds, there was no response.

Then a bluish green mist flew out of the mummy. It took the shape of a small girl who lacked any facial features. She spoke directly into his mind, in a raspy voice, which sent shivers of terror down Harry's back. He began to breathe rapidly as the feeling of fear increased even further. Sweat broke on his forehead, rolling down his white-from-fear face.

The voice wasn't that of a little girl, but it sounded a lot more… older. As if it belonged to an old woman who was about to die. As in, she sounded just like she was going to die any moment and knew that she would be dead.

_"You seek not the land of dead. You seek not the land of the daughters of War. You only seek that which is in the North, but take heed, young demigod. For not even We, the Spirit of Delphi, can tell you of your destiny."_

Harry's eyes widened. His heart was thumping in his chest. His orange Camp shirt was soaked. "North? What lies in the North? And why can't you tell me of my destiny?"

This time Harry received no reply as the visage of the young girl dissipated into nothingness. He closed his eyes as he looked at the back of his hand. The Symbol, that was engraved on it so long ago, was starting to burn a little.

Harry heaved a sigh as he tried to calm his rapidly beating heart before he turned around and walked out of the Attic. When he came down in the hall of the Big House, where he had played chess with Chiron just a few minutes ago, he found the teacher waiting for him.

Chiron was sitting in his wheelchair. "Well? Did she issue a Prophecy?"

Harry shook his head. "No. All I learned was that I was to go North."

"Yet you look disturbed," Chiron noted. "The Oracle told you something that you did not expect?"

Harry breathed deeply. "Does… does the Oracle hide information?"

Chiron raised a brow. "Not in the way most would think. Oracle cannot even lie. She _will_ state the truth in a vague manner, but never withhold anything that the Fates deem relevant."

"And the Oracle's powers? How do they work?"

"I can't say for certain. The only person who would know for sure is the God of Prophecies himself, apart from the Fates. The most prevailing theory is that the Oracle can see into the Loom, but just how much and to what extent is unknown." Chiron answered.

"Okay." Harry took a deep breath in, mostly to calm himself down. "Because I was told that the Oracle cannot see my future."

Chiron's surprise and fear was extremely evident in his expression.

"T-The Oracle can't see your f-future..." he whispered a bit fearfully. Such a thing was completely unheard of. Had it been anything else, he would have chalked it up to Merlin and the Seal of Avalon on Harry's hand. But not even Apollo or even Zeus himself were powerful enough to blind the Oracle like this, much less a minor god like Merlin.

The only entity that can do so would be the very beings that gave the Oracle her powers. The Fates.

That confused Chiron just as much as it scared him. For all rights and purposes, Harry was a normal demigod. Well, as normal as demigods go. Apart from the intelligence that he inherited from his mother, and his magic, there was nothing that was extraordinary.

"I—I need to consult with the gods about this, should they listen. Until I say so, do not embark on your quest to the North. Perhaps take some time, decide on who you want to take along with you." Chiron all but ordered.

Harry nodded. "If you say so."

"Do not worry about the future and what it holds, Harry," Chiron said softly after a while. "In a sense a prophecy simply helps to prepare for it, but never will it prevent it. You may not know or have any idea as to what lies ahead, but that might be for the better. Ignorance is bliss, as they say."

"Thank you, Chiron," Harry whispered as well. "I will get going now."

Chiron nodded in acknowledgment.

* * *

"Who cares?"

"Huh?" Harry said dumbfounded as he looked at Silena. They were both sitting in the Pavilion, which was quite empty. The weather had seemingly calmed down, and the setting sun was breaking through the clouds. There was still quite some time left before dinner.

"So the Oracle can't see your future. Why does that matter, exactly?" Silena asked with narrowed eyes.

"It's not about my future, but rather what's hiding it from the Oracle. And why me specifically?" Harry questioned.

Silena thought about it. "Can you do anything about it?"

"No, not really." Harry muttered. Before she could reply, he added, "And I know that you are going to say 'then don't worry about it' or something."

"You know me so well," Silena said dryly. "In all seriousness, don't worry about it." She then sighed. "You are not worried about the future holds as much as you are worried about why it's clouded, right?"

Harry gave her a look. "That's exactly what I said."

Silena smiled. "Well then. Let's address the other issue. What's in the North that rejects you? An ex? The _one_ girl who said no? Please tell me that you have an ex in the North."

Harry raised a brow. "First off, for someone to reject me, I'd have to ask her out. Secondly, it's the land that rejects me, or rather my kind, not a person."

"The land could just be her house, you know. And seriously? Not a single girl? Gods, you are boring." Silena teased. Inwardly, however, she was more than pleased. Being the daughter of the Love goddess, she could easily sense the attraction between two people. Or even when they were falling for each other. Or even when they were falling out of love.

And as such, she could easily sense Harry and his ever growing crush on her. She was interested in him, of course she was, but Silena was something of a traditionalist. She wanted him to make the first move.

Harry huffed. "Why do you care anyways?"

Silena didn't meet his eyes at first. "Uhh let's say, purely hypothetically, of course, that there was a bet that which out of you and Luke had the most number of girlfriends."

"Really? Just Luke and me? Not Lee? Or even Pollux?" Harry asked. "And who even started this bet?"

Lee Fletcher of the Apollo Cabin. He took after his father and was infamous because he was caught two-timing a daughter of Aphrodite and a daughter of Demeter. Let it be known that he wasn't too bright when it came to anything that didn't involve a bow and arrow. In unrelated news, it was considered that he was lucky to have both of his family jewels after what the two girls did to him. Allegedly, of course. Nothing was ever proved.

Pollux was a son of Dionysius, and unlike his grumpy father, he was a lot more fun to hang out with. No history of two timing with anyone, but a long string of exes, both demigods and mortals.

"Well, again, this hypothetical," Silena began.

"Sure. Hypothetical."

"Yup. But this bet was started by Lee and Rita."

"Really? Lee and Rita? The girl he cheated on, still talks to him?" Harry asked.

"Oh, you poor soul, don't you understand the subtleties of my Cabin?" Silena asked. "It's not exactly your boyfriend's fault if he was set up by the girlfriend, who paid the other girl to seduce him, so that she could have a very good reason to break up and complete the Rite of Passage. Even more so if the boyfriend was in on it. No one in that story is innocent, just the side that is left with as little guilt as possible."

Harry put his head down. "You Aphrodite girls have way too much time..."

Silena laughed. "That I won't deny."

She left out the whole part of the discussion between her siblings where she still fought tooth and nail about the whole Rite of Passage thing. At least she was going to be Counsellor next year as her older brother was going to be leaving for college. Then she could abolish this stupid practice for good.

The downside was that there would less gossip like this. Probably.

Harry then put his head up, looking at her with narrowed eyes. "What's your deal in this hypothetical bet? Your cut?"

Silena's expression turned sly. "Why would you assume that I have any stakes in the bet?"

"You mean apart from bringing it up?" Harry asked.

"Let me rephrase that. What makes you think that I wasn't simply making you aware of a hypothetical bet? Or that I actually decided to bet in it?"

Harry smiled. "I see. One of your siblings told you to find out."

Silena nodded. "Bingo!"

"Which means that you have a cut."

Silena didn't answer the question. "We've veered off topic. About the North?"

Harry sighed, and nodded. He didn't particularly want to push the issue of a 'hypothetical' bet. "Right. The Oracle all but confirmed that it wasn't the Underworld or the Amazons, and I willing to bet that the Hunters are also out. That leaves two possibilities. One is me being a demigod, one is me being a wizard. I suppose there's a third one that involves both of above."

Silena seemed to think it over. "Alaska? Us demigods lose most of our godly protections and powers there right?"

Harry shook his head. "We wouldn't lose our powes in Alaska, merely our connection to our godly parent. Even that is temporary as it immediately reestablished when we leave the state. But that is one possibility. Other would be Quebec, which lies at the very edge of the gods' influence. But it does not weaken our connections to our parents like Alaska."

Silena hummed. "What about you being a wizard? Any magical place that's forbidden for you?"

"Mostly Wizarding prisons, but that's a legal perspective, not a 'land that rejects you' kind of a thing. But the prison for mages in the USA is in Idaho, so that's out." Harry was personally relieved at that. Unlike the mundane world which had a proper prison system with varying levels of prisons, the Wizarding World lumped all criminals in the same location.

A petty thief who was caught for stealing his next meal could be placed in the same space as a serial killer. The only difference was the time served.

"Let's go to the Big House's library for further research," Harry suggested after a while. To be fair, the Athena Cabin had more than enough research materials but Silena wouldn't be allowed inside and he wasn't allowed to take the material outside, as per his mother's decree. He would have to do so later by himself.

* * *

Percy Jackson did not have a good weekend.

It started out quite amazing when his mother, Sally Jackson, took him to Montauk. Then it all went downhill. Sally was killed by an actual monster, a Minotaur. His best friend, Grover, was actually a satyr. And to top it all off, his father was not only alive but also a god.

It was as if his world was shattered in a matter of moments. Percy was honestly trying and failing to comprehend it all, and for once, he couldn't blame it on his dyslexia/ADHD.

Percy could only nod numbly as he took in whatever Mr. Brunner, no wait, that was Chiron, was telling him. He couldn't believe that he was standing in front of the legendary trainer of all heroes. Or the fact that the overweight, balding man who sat next to Chiron was actually the god Dionysus and not a deadbeat loser like Gabe as he assumed.

"You are in shock and I know that this is a lot to take in," Chiron said as Percy was sitting across the table, watching the game of pinochle. "And unfortunately we can't exactly show you the Orientation Movie because of certain… circumstances."

Percy idly wondered what circumstances Chiron was talking about, but the Centaur didn't reveal anything.

Chiron didn't want to reveal that the CD that contained the Orientation film was replaced by a poorly shot video of Ares and Aphrodite. It was a lot more tamer than it sounded.

"However, I have my own duties to attend to. Annabeth here will answer all of your questions." Chiron said as he dismissed Percy and the blonde girl who seemed to be judging every single move Percy made.

It annoyed Percy quite a bit. He was more than used to judgmental stares, given the amount of times he got in trouble, but all those times the people who were giving him such looks were usually the ones who had heard of his exploits. This girl seemed to hate him on principle.

She was a bit rude and condescending but at the very least she answered his questions as she showed him the Pavillion and the Canoe Lake.

For her part, Annabeth wanted to tear her own hair out. This guy, who had slain a Minotaur as his first monster kill, had done so by a stroke of luck. He was largely unaware of the whole Greek gods and monsters, and did not even know anything about the situation on Olympus. He didn't even know where Olympus was to begin with.

Annabeth was expecting Percy to be at least a bit more skilled than that. But boy was she disappointed. The fact that he was largely unaware of the situation in Olympus just made her disappointment grow even more.

The two of them came by the Cabins where she was going to show him Cabin 11, where he'd be staying for now. Before she could, however, they ran into Harry. He was carrying a pile of books and scrolls, and Annabeth recognized some of them from the Big House's library.

"You must be the new kid," Harry said as he looked at Percy. "I'm Harry Potter, Son of Athena," Harry held out his hand, balancing the books on his other.

Percy shook his hand. "Percy Jackson."

Harry looked at Annabeth, noticing her expression. "Why do you look so sour?"

Annabeth didn't meet her brother's eyes. "He's just… not what I expected."

Before Percy could respond, Harry cut in. "Why don't you take these and place them by my desk? Use Malcolm's help and sort these out by date of publication? I'll take it from here."

Annabeth shrugged, before taking the books from Harry and heading on to the Cabin Six.

Malcolm Pace was the latest addition to the Cabin, having joined last winter. He was a year younger than Annabeth, and surprisingly had a stable family given that he was a demigod. He lived with his father, an archeologist, and was discovered by one of the satyrs. He had informed Harry that he would not be staying year-round, which he was perfectly fine with.

Especially as Annabeth had now moved in with him and Rowena in Manhattan after Ashley had officially left Camp. She was fully aware of who her eldest sibling was, as Rowena had come clean even before Salazar could spill the beans.

Harry turned to Percy. "Please don't mind my sister. Annie means well, but like a few of my siblings she is not highly tolerant of ignorance."

Percy wasn't sure what to respond with. At least Harry didn't seem to put him on edge as Annabeth had, with her judgemental stares and snide responses, though the latter were a lot rarer in reality than in his mind.

"So, are we really demigods?" Percy felt as though he was asking that for the tenth time, but it still felt surreal to him.

"Yes,"Harry said simply. "You're not the first person to express disbelief in that, and I highly doubt that you'll be the last. But the fact remains the same."

"Then why doesn't anyone know who my father is?" Percy asked.

"Well that is a lot harder to answer. Unless your father, whoever he is, decides to acknowledge you, no one will know," Harry answered.

Percy looked down, and it didn't take a genius to figure out what he was thinking.

"My guess is that he'll claim you when he thinks you deserve it. In other words, you need to impress him," Harry said. "You killed the Minotaur, yes, and very few are lucky to survive an attack from such a fearsome monster, but apparently that wasn't enough. Perhaps he is looking for merit over luck."

Percy would not deny that it was luck that allowed him to defeat Minotaur. That, and help from his mother.

"Annabeth was certainly acting like I was lucky to have encountered the Minotaur," Percy muttered.

Harry shook his head. Despite her intelligence, she was still twelve. She, like a lot of twelve year olds, wanted her own story where she took down the monster and saved the day. Also like most twelve year olds, she had yet to fully understand that not everyone shared the same opinion as she did.

"In any case, here's where you will be staying," Harry said as they approached Cabin 11. "Cabin 11. It belongs to the god of thieves, messages, roads, travellers, merchants and trade. He also accepts all the Undetermined demigods such as yourself along with his own children."

"That's… Hermes?" Percy said as he tried to remember Mr. Brunner, no, Chiron's classes.

"Yes. And you'll be staying here until you get claimed. That can happen within the next five minutes or never," Harry said. "I personally hope that you do get claimed though. The Cabin Counsellor is an utter fool!"

Percy wondered why Harry had spoken the last sentence a lot louder, but his question was answered when a blonde man opened the Cabin door to greet them. He had blue eyes and a nasty scar on his face. He glared at Harry, but even Percy could tell that there was no heat behind it.

"You are the one to talk, nerd." Luke said. "And really? Utter fool? That's the best you got?"

"I save the best I got for the best. No need to waste them on you," Harry countered. "Well, this is Percy Jackson. Percy, meet Luke. And should your wallet go missing, immediately search Luke's stuff."

"Don't listen to him, Percy. I never steal anything from my own Cabin members." Luke said as he gave Percy a charming smile.

It did nothing to instil confidence in Percy. It was rather refreshing to see the banter between the two of them, who were no doubt good friends.

"By that he means that you're fair game the second you get claimed," Harry clarified.

"He's joking," Luke said to Percy, but once again it did not exactly put Percy at ease.

"So I stay here until my father acknowledges me?" Percy asked.

"Yup," Luke said. "You are a part of my cabin, and unless you are my brother you will be staying here till you get claimed."

"You can at least try to be welcoming," Harry said.

"Ignore this owl-head, Percy," Luke replied.

"Well, I'm going to take my leave now. See you soon for Ancient Greek class," Harry said as he waved them goodbye.

"Uhh Ancient Greek class?" Perry asked Luke.

"Huh, right. Harry teaches the new kids Ancient Greek as per Chiron's request. Well, he does a lot of stuff here on Chiron's request," Luke replied. "Well come on in! I think we have a spot for you here somewhere."

* * *

The next few days were very interesting for Percy.

Harry had taught him Ancient Greek by making him do fun exercises and set a perfect pace for him. The older demigod had factored in Percy's ADHD when he taught him, and Percy quickly learned his stuff.

Then came the sword practicing with Luke. Well, it was with the entire Hermes Cabin, but Luke also had one-on-one session with Percy. In which he had managed to disarm Luke, but only after he had poured some water on himself. He had chalked it up to luck, but Luke seemed to think differently.

The only downside came from this one girl, Clarisse. Percy had met her types before, the type who would bully those who were younger or weaker than her. She had tried to dunk his head in toilet, but he had done… something… and the water had instead made her and her siblings completely wet while Percy himself was dry.

Annabeth was unfortunately caught up in the crossfire, but she had said something about needing him in the upcoming Capture the Flag. He had also learned to not call her Annie. Apparently only her brother could get away with calling her that without a glare thrown their way.

Which had then brought him to this very night, the night of the Capture the Flag. Where he was on guard duty. By himself. Something didn't exactly feel right to Percy. But he couldn't exactly point out what.

As he contemplated his situation, he failed to notice the five Ares campers who came his way.

In another part of the forest was an elevated ground that allowed Chiron to witness the entire Capture the Flag field. As the referee, it was his job to ensure that the game was fair and adhered to the rules. He was keenly observing Percy as he was ganged up on by the Ares Campers, frowning. While what they were doing wasn't exactly against the rules, it was a horrible tactical decision. The Ares-Hephaestus-Demeter-Aphrodite (well, the ones who weren't wasting time gossiping, that is) side didn't have any other hard hitters than the Ares campers, and they were all ganging up on Percy rather than focusing on how to rout the Athena-Hermes-Apollo-Dionysus' offense.

On the opposing side, Luke had already made off with their flag, flanked by Harry while the Apollo campers provided cover fire. The setup was a tad bit one sided, Chiron would agree to that, but the alliances were drawn out at random on the very day of the Capture the Flag. That and it was twenty members per team. If any side had less members, then the Undetermined children would fill the gaps. The ones who sat out would be included in the next game, compulsorily. This ensured that all the Campers would be able to play.

Selecting the correct demigod for the correct position was as much part of the strategy as the actual game itself.

Chiron could easily see through the simple, yet very effective strategy that Athena side had gone for. It wasn't Harry's plan, Chiron could figure out that much. Harry wouldn't count on the Ares cabin going for Percy like they did. At most two or three, but not all. And definitely not Clarisse.

However, his attention was once again diverted to Percy as he was now standing in water, with the Ares campers defeated around him.

His eyes widened in realization. He had his doubts, but that pretty much confirmed it. Percy was a son of Poseidon.

Minor gods were immediately out of the picture in Chiron's mind. No child of a minor god would have that powerful or potent of a demigod scent.

Chiron closed his eyes as he left for Percy's location. He would need all the help he can get, especially if the King actually believed that Percy had stolen the Master Bolt.


	5. Chapter 5

Harry gave a tired sigh as he looked at the board in front of him. He had taken multiple news articles and pinned them up, and was trying to piece together where he was supposed to be going.

He was in the basement of the Athena Cabin, where Athena's library was located. The news sources were from the magical side of the world, with a few tabloids from the mundane counterpart thrown in.

Unexplained disappearances.

Unsolved murders.

Deaths due to animals where the forensics didn't match the animal that was supposed to be responsible.

Other supernatural phenomenon such as a whole village being unable to sleep for a few days before the problem was resolved, though no one knew why.

Harry had discarded the last one from the list. The village was in Maryland, and when he had looked in on it further by adding in godly factors, it had become quite clear that someone in the village had angered Hypnos and the god had cursed them with no sleep for a time.

One such entry had caught his eye.

"Missing women from Boston, Peabody and ▅▅ found, in a..."

Harry looked at the article in surprise. The third town, well presumably a town, name was faded. It was done a long time ago by the look of it. That was suspicious. The article was from last week. The blocked name, or rather by the way it looked — almost as if it was faded off entirely, was suspicious.

None of the other words were faded or rubbed off. Just the one name and, all of the times it was mentioned in the same article.

No, the fade wasn't natural. It was done artificially.

Harry had a hunch as to why this had happened. He quickly rummaged around in the basement, till he found a detailed map of the Massachusetts state.

Sure enough, an entire area had been faded off.

There was a blank white space where the town was presumably supposed to be.

Harry breathed heavily as a pang of equal parts fear and awe set in. His hunch was proving to be correct.

Someone had cast a Fidelius over an entire town.

Harry tried to remember anything about it. He must have read the name a thousand times before. But now, the information was wiped from his mind. The work of the Fidelius.

Harry tried to make heads or tails of the decision to do so. There was no logical explanation. To hide an entire town, or even a city, using the Fidelius was a bad idea. The very act would be discovered, and then, it was just travelling to that area.

Even if the maps didn't say anything about its name, it wasn't as if the town or city itself wasn't present in reality. It was a simple thing to do. In his case, Harry could just take the road straight to the blank space, and he would be inside the area of the Fidelius.

However, one possibility remained. The purpose of the Fidelius wasn't to hide the town.

No, Harry felt. The Fidelius wasn't cast to hide the town. It was cast to call all mages to that location. Well, not just mages. Every mundane and supernatural forces as well.

No doubt that the mundane government had noticed that an entire town was suddenly gone from all of their memories and maps. The magical government would have noticed the second the Fidelius went up. The fact that it was still active meant that no one had broken it down yet.

As for gods, that was… unknown. Olympus was busy in the current situation. Harry still didn't know what it was, but then again, Chiron had not informed anyone about it yet.

The question still remained: Why.

Harry sighed. He would have to approach Chiron in the morning to ask permission for his quest. For now, though, he should get some sleep.

Harry walked in stunned silence. He was in a battlefield, and the battle was long since over. Dead bodies were everywhere, and he could smell the corpses that were starting to rot. It was something out of a nightmare.

He didn't recognize any of the surroundings. Buildings were on fire. He could hear screams from afar, and he knew what was happening. The people were being slaughtered. He gasped as he heard moans and groans. It sickened him to the core when he immediately found out what that was. Soldiers that didn't care about the fact that this city was lost. They just wanted to have their own sick, twisted fun with the civilians.

Harry looked around, trying to find… something. Anything. It was then he saw it. A giant horse, made of wood.

"Troy," He whispered. "The Sacking of Troy."

"You are right."

Harry turned around to see the same old man from his dreams. He walked towards Harry, uncaring of the scenery around them. He waved his hand, holding a walking stick in the other.

"Achilles was killed just a few hours ago. Odysseus brought in his army through deception, the one your own mother thinks was so clever, and you see the results. Greek soldiers slaughtered and killed, even those who surrendered. You especially don't want to be a woman here. At least the men got a quick death."

"Why are you showing me this?" Harry asked, his voice a horrified whisper.

The old man gave him a smile. "But did this really happen? Or is it just a myth? After all, that Horse would have to be a much, much, much larger than that to house a small enough platoon to effectively breach the Wall. And the Trojans completely stupid to not notice an horse filled with soldiers."

Harry looked around. "This is a what-if?" He sounded a bit more hopeful, wondering if the scenes around him were just false.

"Yes. But also no. Let's change the scenery, shall we? To something a lot more… recent." The old man tapped his walking stick on the ground.

With that, the scene changed. Harry was on a small hill, covered in grass. There was another field of battle below him, this time he could make out the armor that was typically worn by knights. They all were locked in combat, and Harry could hear the noises of swords clashing.

"Can you guess where we are?"

Harry shook his head. "This place… doesn't have any landmarks that I can identify."

The old man chuckled good naturedly. "Indeed, for it was only spoken for in myths and legends. Behold, the Battle of Camlann. Of course, this place will always be remembered sadly by me. I would lose my foster son, my very first student on that day."

Harry turned to the old man. His eyes were wide, and his mouth open with surprise. "You're Merlin." He slapped his forehead in annoyance. "I can't believe that I didn't figure it out!"

Merlin smiled. "Don't blame yourself. But back to the topic at hand. Is this reality? Or just plain fiction?"

"This must be real." Harry said with certainty. "It may have been spoken of in legends only, but that's no reason that it doesn't exist."

"Ah, but that in turn makes no sense, doesn't it? Camlann, as far your history is concerned, was purely fictional, as is Camelot. If this was real, then mundane historians would have irrefutable proof that King Arthur was real." Merlin said. "And that in turn, would have proved my existence in the world. However, I only exist as fiction, therefore, I am a myth. At the same time, Rowena, Chiron, and even the gods themselves would readily swear on the Styx that I am quite real."

"But aren't all gods similar? Every one of them only exist within stories and myths as far as mundane history is concerned," Harry argued.

"True, and that is my point. How do you differentiate the real events from what is passed down as legend? Which version of the story is true? Which is overtly exaggerated to the point where it no longer resembles the original?" Merlin questioned. "And, even more importantly, what part of the whole story is simply forgotten by the world?"

"That is why you showed me the Sacking of Troy. We praise Achilles, Odysseus, Ajax and the like. But we conveniently forget about the utter death and destruction they brought." Harry said.

"Quite right. But, no matter how you look at it, they simply weren't important enough for the world. They were forgotten, written off as but a number. This battle is no different. Only Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table would make it through history as worth remembering," Merlin replied. "Their pain, suffering, happiness, joy, and everything that they stood for, all forever wiped off from the legends and written off as 'hundreds of thousands killed.'"

"I don't suppose that it can be changed?" Harry asked.

"Why? Why would you change it?" Merlin questioned.

"Because they deserve to be remembered." Harry answered.

"Do they now? All they did was pick a side and pick up a blade," Merlin countered. "What worth would you give a man who only knows how to swing a sword?"

"I… want to think that there was more to the man than his ability to swing a sword." Harry replied after a while.

"True. All these knights, well, there was more to them than the armor they wore, the kind of weapons they held, and whether they stuck by Arthur or joined Mordred in his rebellion. However, it was something that they were well aware of. They knew, from the moment they donned their armor and picked up their weapons, that they would only go down in history as 'just a number'. They did not care about history remembering them, but rather they cared about fighting for what they believed was right," Merlin said. "And, that, in their own sense, makes them a hero. Something that most Greek heroes lacked. They failed to see past their own hubris, and as a result, were extremely selfish. A trait shared by the gods."

"Because the knights saw the bigger picture?" Harry questioned. He chose to ignore the jab at the gods for now. "Or because they were willing to sacrifice their very lives and ideals for their chosen leaders?"

"Yes, and also yes," Merlin replied. "In a sense, that also made King Arthur and Mordred heroes in their own rights. Being able to command the loyalty of the people, ensuring that they would place their ever lasting trust in the two, even if it meant that it would end in their deaths. But that is not the essence of a hero."

Harry was surprised by that. "Then what is?"

"That's the million dollar question, is it not? What do you think? Is it honor? Being the paragon of virtue? Helping the little people? Trying to better the world, one act of kindness at a time? Or is it just as simple as it sounds and being born to a god?"

Harry was silent for a long time. Throughout history, there wasn't a single person who fit every single thing Merlin questioned. Most, if not all of the Greek heroes were right out.

"It's fine if you don't answer. Just remember this, Harry. A hero isn't someone who is always a good person. To most, it is their one, single defining moment that outshines everything that they ever did, no matter how good or evil they may have been. To others, it is their way of life, a manner of their existence." Merlin said softly.

Merlin smiled and waved his hand. The world began to turn white, and Harry felt more and more light headed. He was going to be woken up from this dream.

"More importantly, a hero is someone who is not afraid to do what they believe is to be the right thing to do, even if the world hates them for it. Or perhaps, it is in these moments that a real hero shines the brightest."

"…Percy, you can't just sum up the entire story into 'Zeus couldn't keep it in his toga,'" Chiron said exasperatedly.

"That's how Harry begins every Ancient Greek lesson," Percy replied.

To the side, Mr. D barked out a laugh. "It's true, though! Peter is correct for once in his pitiful life! This whole Master Bolt business started probably because Father left the damned thing in some harlot's bed! Bet the vibrations were perfect after that!"

"Mr. D! Please! Not in front of the children!" Chiron chided as the sky rumbled. "Back to the point, Percy, the king believes that you stole the Master Bolt."

Mr. D guffawed in humor, before he left to go take a nap.

Percy frowned in anger. "But how! I didn't even know that Mount Olympus was a thing a week ago!"

"There are multiple methods that a god can, let's say, take control of mortals. The Lord most likely believes that your father did the same thing to you," Chiron replied. "Now, granted that this cannot be done without the mortal's consent, but the entire memory can be taken away from your mind."

"You also think that it's my fault somehow?!" Percy growled.

"Your anger is understandable, but no. Stealing anything isn't Lord Poseidon's style. He usually goes for a much more direct, unsubtle approach," Chiron said, unperturbed by Percy's anger. "I personally think that you, and your father, are both innocent, and are being framed."

"By who?!"

"If I knew that, we would not be having this conversation," Chiron said. "However, it still falls upto you to find and deliver the Master Bolt. Think about it. If you, a son of Poseidon, who is being framed, finds and returns his most treasured item, then Lord Zeus will possibly forgive you. The perfect peace offering, if you will."

"So I have to be the one who clears my father's name? Despite having never met him?" Percy was still angry.

"Think this another way," Chiron said. "You return the Master Bolt, and your name is cleared, and a major war that threatens to break will be averted."

Percy was silent for a minute. Chiron had explained to him that if such a war broke out then it would make the World War II look like a playground fight between two bullies. "What do I need to do?"

"First step is to consult the Oracle," Chiron replied. "Then we'll see from there."

"You mean the Mummy in the Attic?"

Chiron sighed in exasperation, but nodded.

Percy shrugged, before he decided to go to the Attic.

Just as he left, Harry approached Chiron.

"Harry, good morning!" Chiron said in greeting.

"Good morning, Chiron," Harry replied. After a short silence between the two, Harry decided to speak up again. "Chiron, what does it mean to be a hero?"

Chiron looked at Harry in surprise. That was a very unexpected question. "That…was an unexpected question."

"Let's just say that I had a very thought provoking dream."

"That isn't something that can just be answered just like that," Chiron replied. "However, the answer lies in something else. What sort of hero do you want to be?"

"I… I don't know, yet," Harry replied.

"Perfectly understandable," Chiron stated. "Perhaps it is something that you should think about on your own. Maybe look a the way those before who came before you were?"

"Like the ones in Ancient Greece? No, I don't want to become like them." Harry muttered.

"You saw something in this dream about the Ancient days?" Chiron asked.

Harry wasn't surprised at the question. Chiron was a lot more intuitive than most gave him credit for. "The Sacking of Troy. I saw the destruction Odysseus and his plan brought. Then the Battle of Camlann. I saw the supposedly fictitious battle that was fought between Arthur and Mordred. I…don't want to see anything like that ever again."

Chiron's expression softened. "War is never a sight to see, Harry. Indeed, Troy was a very bitter moment in our times. There was no innocent side, and the only honorable heroes present died before the actual Sacking."

"From what I saw… were there any honorable heroes?" Harry asked.

"Despite the fact that they fought on opposite sides, both Achilles and Hektor were known to have never lifted their weapons against any civilians or anyone not involved in the war," Chiron said. "Achilles in particular was even against the war to begin with and was going to sail back to his home, but then Hektor killed Patroclus."

Harry decided to change the subject, mainly because the topic was depressing him. "Okay... But more importantly, I wanted to ask for a quest."

Chiron stopped. "You have figured out where you want to go in the North."

Harry nodded. "There's a town, or a small city, I suppose, given the size of the map ot covers, which is being hidden under the Fidelius. I can't tell you the name, but if you see the map, then you should see an empty, blank space in Massachusetts."

"Hiding a town under the Fidelius? That's not very smart," Chiron said. Fidelius was a very powerful charm, powerful enough that it could affect even weaker immortals. That meant that only gods were exempt from its effects.

"That's what I thought. But then I realized that the only reason someone would do so would be to invite everyone else to that place." Harry said.

"So, it's a trap," Chiron said. "And you intend to investigate."

Harry nodded. "I know that Merlin was the one who put this Mark on me. I still don't know what it is as it has never been noted down in his legends. But he gave me this Mark and quest for a reason, right? He must have seen something. Either in my future or in me."

Chiron nodded at that. It was a little known fact, but Merlin possessed a rather unique clairvoyance. Unlike Apollo who could see the future, Merlin could see everything in the present. Chiron was unaware of the limits and the strengths of Merlin's eyes, but the god must have seen something, as Harry had said.

"But how does this mean about the Land that rejects you?" Chiron asked. He did have an idea, but wanted to hear Harry's opinion.

"I wondered about that too. We discarded me being a mage, male, demigod and the like," Harry answered. "We didn't discard one possibility. I'm not American, technically. I may have been born on Olympus, but my true nationality would be British. Its completely possible that this land that is under the Fidelius was owned by the Natives that were victims of the British or other European settlers. In that regard, there could also be a ward or a curse that rejects me from it, or the Fidelius itself could be a factor."

"What do you plan to do if there is a curse or a ward?" Chiron asked. Demigods being resistant to magic wasn't unheard of, but depending on the power behind such a spell, Harry may not be able to enter the area under the Fidelius.

"Simple. If such a spell exists, then it would have an anchor, a point that holds the spell. Either confound it to believe that I am not whatever it thinks I am, or just destroy it. A simple sensory charm should reveal its location," Harry answered.

"I see," Chiron replied. "You have it all planned it out. As expected."

"You still haven't given me permission." Harry noted.

Chiron sighed. Normally, he wouldn't have agreed. But a god had, quite literally, given Harry this quest. Even though the god in question was a minor one, and not as powerful as the Olympians, Chiron knew fully well that Merlin was easily the craftiest of all minor gods, and even among the Twelve Olympians, only Athena and maybe Hermes would be able to outsmart him.

There was no question about denying Harry his quest. The problem was the whole Master Bolt going missing. Should the worst come to pass, Chiron needed as many campers to hold peace as possible. Unless this was somehow tied into that as well, which was also a possibility that Chiron didn't ignore. Perhaps Merlin had seen the Master Bolt's location and coincided with what Harry was meant to do.

"Fine, Harry, you can go on this quest. However, due to recent events, I won't allow you to take any senior Counsellors with you," Chiron said.

Harry cursed under his breath. That meant no Luke or Clarisse. At least he could still ask Silena if she was interested. Then he perked up. "What recent events?"

Chiron didn't hide it from him, especially if his quest was tied into the Master Bolt's disappearance.

Harry was stunned as he heard how the Bolt was missing, and Percy was a suspect.

It was then said demigod joined the two, his face extremely pale and drenched in sweat.

"Ah, Percy, I assume you met the Oracle?" Chiron asked. "What did she say?"

Percy sat down with them, and decided to speak after gathering himself.

It was a bit unnerving, hearing Percy repeat the prophecy. At least it seemed to (probably) confirm that Percy would most likely return the Master Bolt, but he would fail to save what mattered most to him. Harry could not help but wonder if that was something physical or something that was more metaphysical like his ideals, or emotions.

"I'll take my leave, then," Harry said. "I will have to go and prepare for my own quest. And gather my quest mates, I suppose."

Chiron nodded, but Percy cut in. "You have your own quest? What is your prophecy?"

"Percy, you can't just ask someone their future," Chiron admonished.

Percy apologized, and Harry waved it off.

"Still, would have been cool if you joined," Percy muttered.

Harry smiled as he left.

About two hours later, Harry found Silena near the Stables. She was with the rest of her cabin members, who had obviously come off from a Pegasus riding session.

Harry felt a bit of nervousness creep in as he approached them. He could always ask her to come aside, which would then fuel the ever increasing rumors about them. Then there was the whole issue where she might get the wrong idea and think that he wanted to ask her out or something. Which would no doubt lead to a lot of awkwardness between them, something that he wanted to avoid.

On the other hand, if he just waited off to the side, he would come across like one of those creeps who hung around the Aphrodite girls in hopes that they would see some skin. Or the other creeps who thought they were being 'sauve' or 'cool' but just ruined all their chance within a single sentence.

Harry's mind scanned through all the possible outcomes, as it did usually. The problem was that unlike the time when it came to predicting his opponent's attacks, or the other team's movements in Capture the Flag, or even how to go about learning whatever spells Rowena was teaching him, Harry had very little social instincts.

In these situations, more often than not, his mind also ran scenarios wherein he would try and guess what would someone else, who was a lot more wiser in these situations, would do. The only problem was that the person who was most familiar with the fairer sex that Harry knew was Salazar 'I want to beat Zeus' record' Slytherin.

Of course, there was the third option of coming back to ask her later, but by then there was a very good chance that she would be hanging out with Clarisse. Then he'd have to explain to Clarisse why she couldn't join them. And that could lead to Silena declining his offer, out of her sense of loyalty or something.

That was horrifying.

The third option had the worst possible outcome. He would take endless rumors over not going questing with Silena.

With that in mind, he decided to approach the Aphrodite campers, who were leading the Pegasii back to the stables.

"Heya Harry! Did you book the stables for after us?" asked the Counsellor, Louis Laurent. Born to a French-American millionaire, he had long blond hair that he usually tied up in a neat ponytail. His eyes were a light brown, set upon a face that could only be described as beautiful. Not handsome, but beautiful. He was one of the most androgynous men that Harry had ever seen.

"Hi, Louis," Harry greeted back. "And no, I just wanted to speak with Silena."

Louis grinned as murmurs broke out between his siblings. Silena looked at Harry with interest, a slight blush on her cheeks. "Ohh. Sure! Let's give them some privacy, shall we?"

Harry looked at him, confused. Well, true, asking someone to join them on a quest was usually done in private, but it wasn't as if it was a requirement. Of course, Louis would not have any idea that Harry was going on one, but—

Harry was brought out of his thoughts as Louis clapped him on the back, "Good luck on your quest!"

"Uhh.…thanks?" Huh. Seems Louis knew about the quest. Word did travel fast through the Camp's rumor mill, it seemed. The fact that Louis meant that as a figure of speech was lost on Harry.

Harry and Silena waited awkwardly as her siblings hurriedly left the two, whispering, murmuring and giggling amongst themselves.

"So…" Silena said after a while. She was still blushing slightly. She could feel her heart pump ever faster, in anticipation and hope that Harry was going to ask what she thought and hoped he was going to.

"So… yeah, umm," Harry stammered a bit. That whole whispering and giggling amongst Silena's siblings had thrown him off, he wasn't going to lie.

"Take your time," Silena said, in a soft tone.

Harry was silent again for a couple of seconds. "Do… do you want to—"

Happiness burst inside of Silena even before Harry could complete his question. She was elated! He had finally decided to confe—

"—go on a quest?"

In that moment, as all of her happiness and elation, and all of her past excitement along with her hopes came crashing down in just four words. And, in that moment, all she could say was, "What?!"

Poor Harry had no idea what he did to anger her so.


	6. Chapter 6

Preparing for a quest was always a hard task. It required to plan for things you couldn't exactly foresee, such as the monsters you'd fight, or where you'll have to spend the night, and the amount of days you'll be away from Camp. Usually a prophecy can clear somethings up, but Harry had nothing to go on.

He only had a destination, which was some town or city in Massachusetts.

It excited him. This was a challenging task. Anything could happen. No amount of planning will ever be sufficient. With such little information available, any and every strategy that he could make would have to rely on assumptions. And even an idiot would tell you that a strategy made on assumptions will always fall apart.

That had made this all the more interesting. Harry cannot, and would not, go in pre-planned or prepared. It went against everything his Mother would have taught him, had she actually been around.

All strategizing would have to occur on the go.

He only had an idea of what to do if there was a curse or spell that would literally reject him when he would enter the area under its control. Even without knowing the exact spell or curse, Harry knew how to break it.

One school of thought was that magic was very conceptual. It was evident in spell creation. All transfiguration spells, for example, were simply the variations of a single spell: a spell that was created to change object A to object B. You wanted to change a needle to a matchstick? Same spell, different intent. You want to turn lead to gold? Once again, same spell, tweaked to the user's desire.

However, it could take a whole new level in other concepts.

Harry could use a spell that was designed to break other spells, such as the universal Finite Incantatem, and simply tweak it to affect whatever curse that was in his way. Given that it was designed with the concept of 'destroying other spells,' it should do its job.

Provided, of course, that such a curse existed in the first place.

The second assumption was that the curse was not put in place by a god.

That was a completely different matter. Even if one were to pour every single drop of magical energy in the whole wide world and use all sorts of curse breaking rituals, a god's curse would not break. Only the god that put the curse in place can take it back. Or if a more powerful god decided to break it.

It was one of the many mysteries of magic. The way gods manipulated reality was completely different, and yet quite the same, as to how humans did it. More often than not, only the scale differed. It could be seen as another method of solving the same math problem. And yet, the key difference lay in how to reverse the effects.

Reversing a human spell was much, much easier.

Reversing whatever a god did, however… that was more or less impossible for humans to do.

Harry sighed to himself as he waited at the Big House for his partners to show up. He had no need of packing light, given that everything he wanted to carry could easily be 'lightened' by magic. The only thing he didn't enchant was the Celestial Bronze sword that was strapped to his hips.

Celestial Bronze was notorious for its anti-magic properties. It could easily block any and every spell, and this helped immensely in taking down monsters. But, this also meant that it could not be enchanted, transfigured, charmed, et cetera. Even runes failed to do their job.

It was why Rowena always hated Celestial Bronze weapons that were runed, calling them a waste of time and energy to essentially have a weapon that (arguably) looked more badass because it had a few runes that did nothing.

Once again, gods straight up ignored this rule. There were some Celestial Bronze weapons that were enchanted to return to its user, some that could turn into mundane items, and so on. All of these enchantments were done by gods and/or non-humans, such as nature spirits.

It was almost as if the metal considered humans and magic wielded by humans unworthy of it, which would make sense given that it didn't even affect mortals. Harry had personally seen a Celestial Bronze arrow simply go through a mortal's chest (that mortal being a parent of a demigod who had come to drop of his child) and not do any physical damage. It did not even get lodged, or cause any entry and exit wounds. Just went through and through as if he wasn't even there.

Well, Mr. Gardiner did need a lot of therapy because of that incident after that, last Harry heard from Miranda.

Harry was brought out of his thoughts as the door to the House was opened and closed rather roughly. He watched in amusement as Lee Fletcher came out with a scowl.

"This is some bullshit! You're the most senior Counselor but I can't go?! And I was not even allowed to accompany the newbie!" Lee scowled harder.

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover had left for their quest earlier this morning, with Luke, Harry and Chiron sending them off. Curiously Luke had then immediately left for his cabin, not staying till Harry's own departure. Perhaps he was hurt that Harry didn't ask him, but Chiron had specifically told him not to ask senior Counselors.

Harry could understand the blonde son of Appollo's side of things. "Well, to be fair, had an actual god not given me this quest himself, I would not have been allowed to go either."

Lee's shoulders slumped. "I know. But what about the newbie? Almost your entire Cabin is going to be out! I could leave Mike incharge! He's been here for three years, that's gotta count! But nooo, we need you, Lee!"

Despite the fact that Lee could be a bit of a narcissist, he was Harry's second choice in this quest, had the other two declined. Blessed with an incredible eyesight, Lee's prowess with a bow was second to none, outmatching all of his predecessors; at least according to what Harry had seen from those that came before Lee.

Of course, Chiron declining Lee also meant that Harry was saved from a very awkward situation of telling Beckendorf not to come along. After the guy had enthusiastically agreed. And had crafted a special sword and war-axe just for the quest.

"Look at it this way. You are here, in Camp, surrounded by nymphs, dryads, and of course, daughters of gods and goddesses. Whereas we'll be out there, fighting every single moment just to stay alive," Harry said. "And you? You'll be here, keeping them company."

Second thing about Lee: he fancied himself a ladies' man. He wasn't one, but that was besides the point. The entire debacle about him, one of Silena's sisters and a daughter of Demeter proved the point.

"Hmm. Yes... With you away that only leaves Luke as competition! I like this idea!" Lee said. "I think I am gonna go and get to know a few of them better!"

Harry watched as Lee waved him goodbye. Lee wasn't one tot think things through. Had he somehow convinced Chiron to let him come with Harry, then the attention he would get with the fairer sex would be much, much more than whatever he was getting now when he would return.

A few moments after Lee left, both of Harry's partners showed up.

"Hey you two! Are you ready?" Harry waved at Charles Beckendorf, the second-in-command of Hephaestus Cabin. He was a large, muscular, dark-skinned boy who was about a year younger than Harry. He wore a bronze red bandana that covered his short dark hair. Most people who didn't actually know him were usually put off by his face, which looked like it was stuck in a permanent scowl, but he was one of the most nicest people Harry had met.

Behind him, was of course, the first person he asked. Silena. She was still scowling at him.

"Hey yourself, Harry," Beckendorf, as most (including himself) preferred calling him, smiled. "By the way, what did you do to Silena that she is so angry?"

Harry himself was confused at that. Sure, Silena had agreed to come with him, but she had gritted out her answer. Then she had stormed off. Then Clarisse had come after him and demanded a spar. Well, multiple spars, and had Harry not resorted to using magic, he was sure that something would be broken in his body.

Clarisse was extremely strong when she wanted to be.

Then Clarisse refused to tell him anything about it, telling him that he should "use that oversized brain to figure it out." and not to take her for granted or something like that before she stormed off herself. Not that Clarisse storming off is anything out of the ordinary.

"Don't bother, Beckendorf," Silena said, throwing Harry a cross look. "If he knew, then he would have apologized."

Of course, what was happening inside her mind was a completely different story.

'What am I doing?! I knew full well he's super dense! If anything I should explain him everything and clear this misunderstanding! But then he might get the wrong idea and think that I'm like my sisters who only think of dating, dating and nothing but dating! And that might turn him away! I don't want that! But I also want him to know that I do want to date him! Arrrgghhh! Why is this so confusing?!'

Unfortunately for Harry, this confused mindset of Silena was translated into internal anger, that she was taking out on him.

Her internal dilemma came to a halt when Chiron approached them.

"I see that all of you are ready," Chiron commented as he saw them, all of them carrying backpacks and their weapons of choice. "You don't know exactly what to expect, as this is the first quest in the past three centuries wherein a prophecy wasn't issued. As much as it pains me to say this, but if there's no word from any of you within the next two weeks, you will be declared dead. Of course, that doesn't mean that you won't be welcome back if you do survive and have no means of contacting us, but that's besides the point. I wish you all the very best, and hope that all of you will return to us, unharmed."

The Centaur was greeted by three blank stares.

"Jeez, could you at least try and be positive?" Silena muttered.

Chiron gave her a sheepish look. "My apologies, child."

"Anyways, shall we be off?" Beckendorf asked.

The Camp had agreed to drop them off to Manhattan, where the three of them had taken a Amtrak to Boston.

The three of them were seated in an ICW vehicle (a SUV), which Harry hired by dropping his sister's name at the ICW office in Boston. Of course, they had to confirm with 'Anastasia Rivers', which was Rowena's name in the current era.

They had also received information that the ICW or the MACUSA had detected absolutely no abnormalities in the area. It was alarming to Harry, but no one could see anything wrong with the map when he told them about it. It wasn't until Rowena Floo-called them to confirm that Harry and his friends were on her instructions (a bare faced lie) and that she was sending them to investigate did they give the three demigods a driver and a car to take them to… wherever they wanted to go.

It was for this reason they could not use portkeys or apparition — it was not possible to apparate to a place you had no knowledge of. In this case, as the knowledge of the place itself had been deleted from everyone's minds, they had to travel by road.

At this point, they too, realized that they had absolutely no idea where Harry and his friends wanted to go, except it was only about 20 miles from their location.

"How did they not notice?" Silena asked. The interior of the SUV was expanded, allowing them all to sit in comfort. The driver seat was even sectioned off, allowing them privacy. She was facing Harry and Beckendorf.

"The Mist is keeping that under warps, I think." Harry answered.

"What do you think they'll see?" Beckendorf asked a question of his own.

"Unclear. Perhaps it is not a question of what they see, but what they perceive," Harry replied. "After all, I had to manipulate the Mist myself to make them think that the two of you were magicals. And the fact that we are armed with Celestial Bronze. You have no idea how much legal trouble we'd get into for carrying it."

The MACUSA had classified Celestial Bronze as a Class 2 restricted metal, because of its anti-magic properties. This meant private possession of it was allowed, but you could not carry it outside your home. Harry had no clue what they would do if they found out that the Camp had more than enough to arm an army, or if they found any non-magical demigod owning it.

"Wait, don't you mages have that… mind defence thing?" Silena asked. She had calmed down quite a bit from her previous anger on herself and Harry. Mostly because Harry and Beckendorf slept through the entire four hours of train ride, allowing her to gather herself.

Harry was certainly very happy that she was back to her normal self, not that he knew why she was angry at him in the first place. He wasn't going to bring it up, in the possibility that she might get angry again. And especially in the presence of Beckendorf. While he didn't know why she had lashed out, he certainly did know that they should have this talk in private.

"The Mist can bypass it," Harry answered. "I think it is because the Mist being a divine construct and Occilumency, or what you called the mind defence, being a human construct, the Mist wins that battle. Of course, that is just my personal theory, not backed by any evidence, so, yeah. Don't take it as fact."

Mist could even bypass Harry's own mental defences, and he had very powerful ones given that he was literally born from the mind of a goddess. Rowena refused to explain why this happened, so Harry had to formulate his own theories. Harry suspected that she didn't know herself. There were many things in the world that were unexplainable, after all.

The car stopped after about twenty five minutes. It was almost nighttime, and they would have to look for a place to stay the night.

"Huh? Why did we stop? This doesn't seem like our destination..." Beckendorf commented. Harry could see the truth in that: they were stopped in the middle of the road. Sure, they in a city, but the car was literally in the middle of the traffic.

And every other car had stopped as well.

It wasn't a traffic jam, exactly. There was no honking, no noise, nothing.

On a hunch, Harry got out of the car, with Silena and Beckendorf following him. The outside air was quite foggy, which the demigods immediately recognized as the Mist. It was quite thick here.

He walked around the car, and tapped on the dark tinted driver side window.

There was no answer.

He placed his hand on the window, turning the tint transparent.

"What the hell?!" Silena gasped.

The driver was stuck in time, as if he had been frozen still.

"A stasis field. We just entered one," Harry commented. He turned to explain to his friends. "Basically time itself is frozen here. Well, time for all humans and human machines is my guess."

"Then why aren't we affected?" Beckendorf asked. "We're humans too!"

"Are we though? We're part human, part god. Whatever this stasis field is, it was carefully designed in a way that it would only affect humans. Fundamentally, we aren't human, but demigods."

"Same thing, right? I mean, every single medical test would prove that we're humans," Silena said.

"Not in the eyes of magic," Harry explained. "Simply put, the magical definition, or rather the concept that is human, is any living being born to two humans. I know, it's a circular definition. However, to magic, we aren't born to two humans, are we? We are born to a human and a god. That small distinction is more than sufficient for this spell to ignore us."

Before either could say anything else, they heard a soft swishing sound. They immediately jumped behind the car they were in, as three arrows lodged in the door of the other side.

"Time only froze for humans, right?" Beckendorf asked. "That must mean that the person shooting at is a monster! Or a demigod, I guess."

Harry and Silena had come to the same conclusion, but neither voiced it.

"We need to move," Harry said, as he summoned all of their gear to him and began to run into the city. Not wasting any time, Beckendorf and Silena followed, just as more arrows rained upon them.

"How many archers do they have?!" Silena questioned as she ran alongside Harry and Beckendorf, for once thanking Clarisse for her killer workout sessions.

"Just one," Harry replied. "The arrows aren't as quick as you might think! Its just a single archer!"

Harry held up his hand as they ran, a clear reflection forming on the palm. A simple transfiguration spell, which turned his palm into a mirror. He turned it around, to spot a lone archer on a nearby rooftop, readying his bow. Well, it was hard to determine whether it was a he or she, given that the archer wwas dressed in all black, and had their face covered by a mask.

'What? He's planning to shoot from that far off? A bow doesn't have that much range! Unless…'

Harry turned his palm back to normal, and with a quick hand gesture, signalled Beckendorf and Silena to turn left. They ducked into a nearby alleyway, just as a arrow embedded itself just behind Harry.

The arrow then dissipated into nothingness.

"What? Was that a trick of the Mist?" Silena asked as she noticed that as well.

Harry shook his head. "No. A conjured arrow. I should have noticed the first time. The bow was a red herring. The person shooting at us isn't an archer, but a mage who is using conjuration to shoot the arrows. Arrows don't exactly travel in a perfectly straight line, ignoring the wind as if it wasn't a factor."

"Doesn't look like he's shooting," Beckendorf said. "Either way, we should set up camp somewhere."

"He's not shooting because he doesn't have a line of sight. But as soon as he does, we'll become targets. None of us are long range fighters even," Harry muttered the last part. Stupid Chiron and not letting him take Lee! This mage archer would have been history!

"Okay, so we keep going. But… where?" Silena asked.

"To sustain a spell of this magnitude, they would need to draw power from the very planet," Harry said as they continued to move into the alley. "And to do that, they would need to be in an area where magic itself concentrates naturally, such as a ley line. Unfortunately, because all of my knowledge of this area, even if I had it to begin with, is lost because of the Fidelius, I have no clue where said ley line is."

They were almost out of the alley on the other side, and the archer must have predicted this, which Harry realized.

In preparation, he manipulated the Mist. Normally, this would be very taxing. However, the fact that Mist was thick here made it quite simple. Beckendorf and Silena watched in awe as three replicas of themselves walked out into the streets, and were immediately shot upon.

The replicas ran to the right.

After about a good ten minutes, Harry, Beckendorf and Silena went to the left instead. To their relief, the trick had worked.

Harry could feel some exhaustion set in. Not the physical kind, but rather the mental kind. The amount of magic he used wasn't the issue, the manipulation of the Mist was. Even someone like Rowena could not manipulate the Mist more than few times a day, and given that he created three copies of themselves from the Mist, it was a bit exhaustive. If the Mist wasn't as thick, then he would have fallen from the exhaustion it would have caused.

Either way, Harry really needed to figure out what was happening. This place left more questions than it answered.

The room was quite spacious for a hotel such as this. With just two beds and a couch with an attached bathroom, it had everything. Well, given the fact that everyone was placed under a stasis, no one in the hotel was going to object to Harry swiping a key from the front desk and taking it for themselves.

They had decided against camping out. The mage-archer could return any moment, and if he locates their camp, they were done for. Here, the hotel room had only three windows, and all had blinders on them. Harry even reinforced them to withstand everything short of a tank shell. The only other way in was the front door, which Harry once again reinforced.

The only issue was that there were two beds, that were barely separated by a small space between them.

Beckendorf suggested to draw straws to determine who would get to sleep on the couch. Harry and Silena were both a bit suspicious of the other boy when he immediately pulled the shortest straw.

But he didn't leave them any room for argument. Beckendorf promptly lay down on the couch and fell asleep.

Silena and Harry, with blushes on their faces, had no choice but to enter the beds. At least they were separate beds, was the thought running through their heads, with mixed relief and disappointment.

"So…" Silena whispered after she was quite certain that Beckendorf had fallen asleep. "… I'm sorry."

Harry turned in his bed, facing her. "For what?"

"For…" Silena took a deep breath. "Well... I should not have gotten angry at you for asking me on a quest like that."

'I hope he doesn't press it I hope he doesn't press it I hope he—'

"Well, no worries. But why did you get angry to begin with?"

'Fuck.'

"Uh-you know, my siblings, they, well, they thought that…" Silena mumbled. What was she going to say?! That she was hoping that Harry wanted to ask her out? And she got excited about it? And when he didn't, her excitement turned into anger that she directed at him?

"They thought that I was somehow taking you for granted or something?" Harry asked. In his mind that would make sense. Why else would Clarisse call him out on that? Obviously a few of her siblings must have wanted to spread rumors or something.

Silena had absolutely no clue why he reached that idea. But that didn't mean that she was going to let that opportunity slip by.

"Yes!" Silena said a bit loudly, and Beckendorf mumbled something in his sleep.

"Yes," Silena repeated in a whisper. "Exactly. And I got caught up in their lies and you know how that goes. So I'm sorry."

"No, no… I'm sorry if you ever feel that I take you for granted."

"You don't!" Silena said a bit loudly again. Beckendorf the sleep-mumbler returned. "I mean, I have never felt that way."

"Okay," Harry said as he smiled. "So, we cool?"

"Yes, Harry," Silena said. "We cool."

"Well at least I hope Clarisse gets the message before she decides to kick my ass when we return," Harry mumbled as he turned around in the bed. Mostly because he couldn't stop smiling because they were now back to normal, and he didn't want Silena to see that. It would be embarrassing.

"She… no, I will talk to her.." Silena replied in a confused tone.

'Note to self: don't complain about Harry to Clarisse.'

"Three of my former, no, three demigods have come here." said the mage who had fired upon Harry, Beckendorf and Silena. The mage spoke to a mural, featuring a diety that could be best described as a serpent with wings, along with another, smaller jaguar present in the same space as that of the serpent.

"I tried to kill them, but they managed to escape."

"Why? Why try and kill? Why not explain why we are doing our work?" said the voice from the painting. It was soft, smooth, and lacking any gender.

"Because they are sent by the same gods who ignored me and others like me," said the mage. "I'm sure that they would not sit down and have a talk."

"Ah yes, the usurpers and their slaves," said the voice. "However, did I not tell you how to end all of your nightmares? I'm sure that they too, are suffering from it. The world isn't kind to you or them. If you get them to join us, we would be all the more powerful."

"Except I know them. One is a son of Athena, the other a son of Hephaestus and the last a daughter of Aphrodite. They're quite… loyal to their parents."

"I see. Not to worry, my friend. But just try to make them understand. Who knows? They might just listen to us."

The mage nodded. "If that is what you wish, I will try. But I won't make any promises.


	7. Chapter 7

How long had it been?

Even he had forgotten. It wasn't his fault, really. His greatest enemy had sealed him away, but he was always conscious. He hated everything about this, being sealed into a mural that also depicted his greatest rival. It was always a reminder, that he had been defeated.

He was always watching. Plotting. After all, he was the original owner of these lands and its people. He ruled as a god should, instilling both fear and hope. He still held authority over the land that he had born from, no matter how weakened he may be.

Time held no meaning on this plane of existence. Maybe it had been just moments ago when he was sealed. Maybe it had been centuries.

One day, he would have his domain and lands back. One day, he would destroy those who aided in his sealing. One day, he would strike back against his greatest enemy.

One day he would…

It was then the ones who sealed him had disappeared. Faded from this plane of reality. It allowed those… those usurpers and their slaves to come and take over what was rightfully his.

However, they were not the only ones who came to settle in what was rightfully his. They brought in those creatures with them. Oh, how he hated those monstrosities. They killed, and pillaged, like a blight that had been brought upon the country.

The country that was rightfully his.

But he couldn't do anything but watch.

Watch as the monsters targeted a specific group of people. The usurpers' slaves, or rather, their children.

It sickened even him. These beasts, who knew only how to hate and kill, tear into children and their parents doing nothing about it. Sure, he wasn't human. He had no human feelings. However, letting his own children die… he would never do that. Not until they had fulfilled their purpose.

However he was not a usurper.

He had authority over this land, no matter how—

So you seek vengeance?

Yes. Yes he did seek vengeance. He knew not who had been able to enter his own plane of existence. But he would not turn away any help, regardless of who was giving it. He was just that desperate. However, he was powerless at the moment. He had no idea how to get his revenge.

Then let me show you.

Yes. That could work. The images and visions that flooded his mind, however, painted a dark future. What he needed to do to avoid that, it was a difficult task. A very difficult task. It would require years, perhaps centuries of planning. Perhaps… no. It would work.

It has to work.

Of course, he was no fool. He did not trust this voice in the slightest. But the method of revenge he was thinking of, well, he was going to take all of them down with him. There would be no going out in glory, or even an end that could be considered honorable.

There would be no witnesses to his deed. No one who would have any idea of what he did. But when the usurpers would realize that something was wrong, it would be too late.

He only needed to get away from here, to a place that held its own dark legend. But who would move his mural?

Please! I don't want to die! I'll do… anything!

A usurper's child? Here? He cared not. He would save this child. He needed her.

That's right, young one. Place your hand upon this mural. I will show you how to save yourself.

When Silena woke up, she saw Harry sitting in a meditative pose, his eyes closed. Beckendorf was not in his bed, er, couch, but she could see the bathroom light turned on, so obviously he was in there.

It was still dark outside, so they must have woken up very early. Probably five or so in the morning. Silena stretched as she sat up, working out the kinks.

She thought about calling out for Harry, but decided against it. She didn't want to disturb him, after all. Fortunately for her, his eyes opened up after a second.

"Good morning," Silena said in greeting. "What time is it?"

"Good morning," Harry replied. "It's actually eight thirty in the morning."

That threw her in for a loop. "Wh-What? You're kidding me right? It's still dark outside!"

"I am aware. Whoever we're after, just set up a field of darkness around the entire town, or most of it," Harry explained. "Most likely to flush us out."

"I don't see how that would flush us out?"

In response, Harry pointed outside the window. "See that? And try to ignore the Mist," He suggested.

Silena narrowed her eyes. She couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. It was a normal town, with its buildings and…

Wait.

In the distance, she could make out a dark purple pillar. It blended in with the darkness, making it hard to see unless you were concentrating and trying to ignore the Mist in its general direction.

"What is that?" Silena asked, turning to Harry.

"Unknown at this point. I was trying to scry the location, but its shielded against that," Harry answered. "My guess is the obvious. Its the place where we'll find whatever is causing this field of darkness and the time stasis, along with the Fidelius. But… otherwise, everything is an unknown."

"Well, if it is this dark at this time," Beckendorf said as he came out of the bathroom. "Wouldn't the gods catch on?"

Harry looked at Beckendorf, his expression grim. "Really? Would they? They're a bit distracted at the moment. Whoever this entity is, that is causing this unnatural phenomenon, is either connected with the theft of the Master Bolt or an opportunist who took advantage of the situation."

Silena silently headed into the bathroom as Beckendorf sat down in front of Harry.

"I suppose," Beckendorf said. "So what do we do? I mean that place must be a trap for us as much as their base of operations, right?"

Harry nodded. "Yup. We're practically going in blind. And I can't plan for the events, location, or the enemy I have no knowledge of, so we'll have to wing it, essentially."

Beckendorf did not miss the tone of quiet resignation in Harry's voice. Like his siblings, Harry hated to go in to things, be it a Camp activity like CTF or a regular day-to-day task like doing your chores, without having a fully thought-out plan.

However, that required information, knowledge of the enemies one will be facing, their tactics, or even as simple as their identities, et-cetera. Here all Harry had was a location, and the fact that one of their adversaries was a mage. And was skilled enough to fire conjured arrows with good enough speed and accuracy to make the three of them run away and not retaliate. This told him that their enemy was also well-versed in regular archery.

The fact that this mage did not pursue them further also told Harry that to him, Harry and the others were not a threat. Otherwise, it was a simple matter of finding the only three fully conscious people in this whole town and killing them while they slept.

It was also rather obvious that a divine entity was involved. The area-wide Fidelius. The time stasis. And finally, this field of darkness. Even if the mage was a child of Hecate, he would not have enough power by himself to cast a single one of these, much less all of them at the same time.

But which one?

Most, if not all of the Olympians were out. Even if one of them was the thief who stole the Bolt, they would be too busy either guarding the Bolt or finding the Bolt. Among the minor gods, only Hecate had the ability to do all of these at the same time, but if she had, Harry doubted that Merlin would have sent him here.

That left but one possibility.

"I know that look," Silena said, knocking Harry out of his thoughts. He turned to her, only to notice that she was talking to Beckendorf.

Beckendorf turned to Harry, and then back to her. "Oh sure, I try to break him out of his thoughts, and I don't make any progress. You show up, utter a single sentence, that wasn't even directed at him, and he instantly perks up. This is some relationship goals."

Silena fought the blush on her cheeks, which failed as she saw that Harry was also sporting a blush of his own. "S-So, anyway, what conclusion did you come to?"

"We...may not be dealing with a Greek god." Harry said, to their shock.

It had been two, maybe three years.

That accursed quest that Hermes gave them, well technically, his favorite son, had gone sideways. The truth was, the only reason it had gone sideways was because of said son of Hermes. Luke had been the only one to accept some deal from the Titan who was imprisoned there.

And he had turned on them in an instant. Almost as if he wasn't himself. He had pushed both of them into Ladon himself, watching with an expressionless face as the ancient beast bit and tore into them before discarding them, throwing them off a cliff.

Ladon's poison was very painful, easily more painful than its bite. Fortunately Peter, the eldest one among them, had succumbed quite easily. He died a quick, painless death.

She wasn't that lucky.

Laura felt the poison grew stronger and stronger in her blood. It felt as if her insides were being melted, then frozen, then melted yet again. She could feel her blood boil. She was sure that she had been bleeding from her eyes, nose, mouth, and everywhere else as well.

Just as she thought that she would hit the ground, she had somehow landed into a cave.

It defied all logic. There was no cave in there. There shouldn't have been any cave. It was a straight fall, and by all intents, she should have died. But the fall was cushioned.

Laura would have preferred it that way, if she had died.

However, the only words that came out of her mouth were the ones that had granted her this second chance at life. This cave, whose interior was much like that of a temple's, held an ancient mural, depicting a flying serpent and a jaguar like animal, both of whom were fighting over something.

The mural did something to her. Laura was not sure what or how.

All of a sudden, Ladon's poison was flushed from her system. All of her wounds healed. She was as good as new.

'I have granted you this life. What shall you do with it, young one?' The voice from the mural had said.

"I want to see my friends, back at Camp," Laura had replied. "They must be worried sick about me. Probably think that I am dead, too. And I should warn them about Luke."

'And how do you think you will make it to this Camp? Just because I have healed all of your wounds does not mean that you are healthy.'

Laura was silent for a time. "…my godly parent will guide me."

'Will he, or she? Your divine mother, and yes, it is your mother who is a goddess, help you? When she didn't even help you during your quest? Or even as you lay dying?'

"How do you know that it is my mother who is a goddess?" Laura asked.

'I know many, many things. I am aware of many, many things. Ascertaining the identity of your mother was a trivial matter, daughter of Hecate.'

Laura gasped. "B-But that is! That is n-not true! I can't perform magic! I am much better with a bow and arrow!"

'No? But you are rather skilled at Mist manipulation, yes? It was how you disguised the three of you as aurae when you entered the Garden. Quite ingenious, and extremely difficult.'

Laura sat in front of the mural, her mouth open in shock and her eyes wide. "Regardless, my friends need to be warned about–"

'No they don't' the voice said forcefully. Then it quieted down into a more calm, serene tone. 'Look at you. All alone in here, abandoned by your parents. Your mother never even cared about you, yet you wish to go and help her, no matter how indirectly?'

"Yes. My parents may have abandoned me, but my friends never did! And Luke killed Peter! He is… was… well, it is not important! They need to know!" Laura snapped, her surprise giving way to anger.

'And how do you intend to prove this? It will be your word against his.' The voice stated calmly.

"...There would be inconsistencies in his story and mine. I could always press on that. Perhaps even make an oath on the Styx!"

'And then? Say they believe you. You get this Luke thrown out. Or killed. But the Titans won't rest would they? They'll get a new pawn, perhaps one who is far more powerful.'

Laura was once again silent.

'The one controlling Luke is none other than the one you call Crooked One. No doubt he has contingencies in play.'

"What do you want from me?" Laura asked, resigned.

'A complicated task. However if we succeed, then, well, imagine a world where demigods such as yourself could live, without having to fear monsters. A place where no monster would even hunt your kind. A place where you don't need to be afraid of every person you meet, wondering if they were a monster or not.'

"That sounds way to good to be true." Laura said.

'It is not. With your help, I can show you how to create such a world. But first and foremost, forget about your friends and the traitor. When we're done, it will be all the sweeter. You would have saved all the demigods of not just this age, but of all the ages to come. And the Crooked One's plans will be left behind in the dust, completely shattered even before they could do harm.' The voice was still as calm and patient as ever.

"And how do I know that you are not lying?" Laura asked.

'I swear upon the Styx that whatever I have told you is accurate.'

Laura took a deep breath as she considered her options. On one hand, Luke will be free to cause whatever damage he can under the Crooked One's influence. On the other, she helps this… god, and the world becomes a paradise for her kind.

"What… what do we do first?"

'First, I train you in magic. Then I'll tell you the rest.'

Harry, Silena, and Beckendorf walked into the open road. It was quite hard to see, given that the streetlights were off and it was pitch black all around.

Harry could use magic to make out everything around him, but instead chose to use electrical spells to power up the lamps in the streetlights to allow his teammates to see clearly as well.

"Makes you wonder why the streetlights aren't turned on, but then I remembered that it is technically morning. And all the operators are probably frozen in time," Beckendorf commented as he saw all the lights within a ten meter radius instantly light up.

"That is not all," Harry said. "This darkness is also unnatural. It isn't as simple as an extended night. I mean, look up. No moon or stars."

"And why aren't the gods doing anything about this?" Silena asked. "Surely this area of darkness would raise questions up there? Even when they are distracted from this?"

Harry shook his head. "No. I have no doubt that either they are deliberately ignoring this, which is foolish, or they have ensured that the gods won't interfere."

"What could they do to achieve that?" Silena asked.

"Any number of things," Harry answered. "But if Merlin sent me, or rather us here, they couldn't keep everyone out. And I'm quite sure that this also falls under 'no direct interference' or something."

Beckendorf stopped. "Guys, wait. Is it just me or is this… just too easy? I mean, if they want to stop us, why haven't they done anything else?"

That was what Harry was wondering too. "Good point, but–"

Harry was cut off by a large roar. An equally large monster approached them, that the demigods immediately recognized as a chimera. It was a good ten meters (about 32 feet) tall. Its lion head was the one roaring loudly, while the snake tail was dripping with a purple fluid from its mouth. The part of it that was the goat was just… glaring at them menacingly.

"Beckendorf, I absolutely hate you," Silena said as they readied themselves.

'We're running out of time,' said the god from the mural. 'They would be here any moment.'

Laura had no idea of his identity. They were never taught about non Greek gods. But he was powerful, despite having claimed that he had lost most of his power. She dreaded to think just how powerful he was in his prime.

'Why did you not talk to them and convert them to our side?'

Laura did not want to. To her, confronting them would be a lot harder than simply killing them. Sure, she would forever regret killing her friends. But it was necessary. Three demigods – along with this town – would die, but she would be bringing salvation to all others.

She thought of it as a simple arithmetic. Around a few thousand versus many, many more. It had to be this way. It was simpler that way. The funny thing is that she was sure that Harry of all people would see her side of things.

'This is why I suggested that you try and get them on our side,' the god said, exasperated.

Laura still didn't know if that was the right thing to do. How would they react if they knew that she was still alive? That she didn't contact anyone for the past two to three years? And the fact that this town had to die to save all demigods of present and future? It was quite distressing to her.

In all truth, she did not want to kill them. Conversely, they were trying to stop them, and therefore, they had to be stopped. Given the nature of the ritual they were going to do, she could not just knock them out.

'I could protect them if they were on our side.'

Laura steeled herself. "If I can't bring myself to kill three, I can't bring myself to kill off an entire town."

'If that is what you wish. But we must do this quickly. The more time I maintain this time stasis and darkness field, the more we risk the usurpers finding us out. My interference here would render their laws useless and they would wipe us out without any issues.'

"In that case, why wait any longer? Surely you have collected enough magical energy from the surrounding ley-lines?"

'I have not, not yet. But I am almost ready. There is, however, one last thing… that I must do before I have collected enough energy.'

"And what is that?"

'Place your hand on my mural and you will know.'

Magic, well most of it, did not work on monsters. At least not directly. On a chimera of this size, even if Harry were to put his entire magical energy into a single spell, it wouldn't even faze it.

However, this did not apply to certain spells that affected the mind and not the body. Or the spells that changed the area surrounding the monster into something that could harm the monster. For example, Harry could just transfigure the entire ground the chimera was standing on into lava.

The problem was the fact that if he did that, he would have to protect himself, Silena, Beckendorf, and every other mortal in the area from the scorching heat. The temperature of lava could go as high as 1300°C (2400° F) and at that high temperature, Harry might as well cast fire and heat protective spells on the entire city.

Which was why, even for a wizard/witch the simplest solution to kill a monster was to use tried and tested methods such as Celestial Bronze. Even though controlling the monster's mind was an option, it was never consistent. Some may prove more difficult than others, and that can backfire. Spectacularly.

Chimeras were very tough monsters. The Camp ranked them at a solid seven (out of ten) on the difficulty scale. The lion head could breathe fire. The goat could spew curses, in rare cases. The snake's poison was almost incurable. And Harry didn't have phoenix tears on him if they got hit by the snake's venom.

The tactic was not to engage directly, but attack from afar. But once again, they lacked long ranged fighters. Beckendorf preferred swords, war-hammers, battle-axes and the like. Silena had daggers. Harry himself had a sword.

None of the weapons were suited to fight a chimera. Harry tried to remember how it was defeated in the myths. Bellerophon, the hero who first defeated the chimera, had the original Pegasus to help him. He lodged his spear, with lead attached to it, into the chimera's neck. Then, when the chimera breathed fire, the lead melted, suffocating the chimera and killing it.

Wait…

That gave him an idea.

"Beckendorf… do you value that battle-ax you're holding?" Harry asked.

"Not particularly, no," Beckendorf replied as the chimera approached them. "Its just a generic one that I created."

"Good," Harry said as he turned to him. "Then I want you to throw the battle-ax towards that thing, with all your might. Don't worry about it not hitting; I'll handle that."

Celestial Bronze may be impervious to magic, but the handle was regular leather and metal. Harry could use his magic to guide it straight into the chimera. To be fair, he did not need to hit the neck.

He was going to cut the chimera in half.

Beckendorf nodded and prepared himself. With a mighty grunt, he flung the battle-ax at the chimera.

Harry immediately put his magic to work, not only increasing the force behind the throw but also changing its direction to target the chimera directly.

The chimera, who saw this all unfold, roared and tried to dive out of its way, but it was too late. With Harry guiding it, there was no way it would miss.

The battle-ax struck the chimera in its side, and as though the chimera was made of butter, cleaved it in two. Both the halves of the chimera promptly turning back into nothingness.

All of them looked at each other in confusion. "No gold dust?" Silena asked.

She was right; the chimera had not exploded into gold dust like any other monster. It had simply vanished, as if it was an—

"An illusion," Harry said. "And a damned impressive one."

Most illusions were obvious, they only targeted the sight and hearing. But they could not only see and hear the chimera, they had felt its very presence, smelled the venom from the snake, felt the air vibrate as it roared. This was no simple illusion. They had obviously taken into consideration that someone amongst the three of them must have known how to spot illusions.

Harry had a very bad feeling about this… whoever the enemy was, must have known about the three of them. They could very well be dealing with a traitor.

"I was wondering why that felt that easy…" Beckendorf muttered as he went to pick up the battle-ax.

"Yeah…" Harry replied. "Anyways, this goes without saying, but keep on guard. The next monster may not necessarily be an illusion."

Laura screamed as pain penetrated her entirety.

"WHAAA—! YOU S-S-AID TH-"

'Don't get me wrong. This pains me to do. I do not wish this to happen to you. But like you said… one life against many. If it gives you any consolation, your sacrifice will not be in vain. Now, Laura, sleep, for your work has ended.'

"Why," Laura sobbed as she fell to her knees. "You said… you promised… I would… I wanted…"

Her vision darkened. She shivered, despite the utter pain that she was in. Suddenly everything felt cold. Was she sweating? Or did everything turn to ice?

'I know. The truth is…'

Laura could still hear the god who revived her. But she could not see anything else. Or hear anything else. It was so cold...and she was so very afraid.

This isn't what was supposed to happen!

Why was he doing this to her? Wasn't she meant to have another chance at life? Bring salvation to all demigods? Wasn't that why she was revived?

So why?

Why was he killing her?

Why?

"… she had technically died."

What? That was her voice… but she wasn't the one who spoke.

"The best I could do was implant a part of my divinity into her body to anchor her soul for a few extra years. It was enough for me to prepare this ritual. It wasn't enough, however, to give her an entire life, no matter how much I wanted to."

This was the god! The very god who had took pity on her! Gave her this second chance! Taught her magics so obscure that she was sure no one else knew of its existence! When did he become so cruel?

"Cruel? No, son of Athena. This isn't cruelty. The way her mother essentially threw her aside was cruel. The way your own mother took all the knowledge of my people without permission is cruel. The way your gods usurped my lands, and the way my people were destroyed was cruel. This… this is justice."

What? Laura wasn't a son of…

Realization hit in.

She must have been unconscious for a moment.

Harry, Silena, and Beckendorf had arrived. She had to talk to them! At least before she disappeared entirely! Ask them how they've been! Apologize for essentially disappearing on them! Just… just talk to them…

"Right you are. I am not Greek. Do you recognize this mural? No? A shame. It depicts two… I suppose we are called Mesoamerican gods. Well, it depicts me and my greatest rival in combat. He would never have resorted to this, you know. He loved you humans. To the point where he essentially ensured that no human life would be sacrificed to the gods! To me! ME!"

It was getting colder and colder. Laura felt like crying. But she couldn't. She couldn't move, or open her mouth to scream. She could do nothing but hear her own voice as it explained something to her friends.

"But none of that matters now. The only things I regret, truly regret, is that your friend Laura had to die...and that none of your gods would ever know that I am the one ending them. Shame… I would have loved to see their reactions if they knew that Tezcatlipoca is the one who will bring them down."


	8. Chapter 8

Harry, Silena and Beckendorf were on edge as they approached the almost empty area from where the gigantic dark pillar was visible. The place they were in seemed to be transformed into a completely different area.

It did not resemble anything that was in this town they were in. The floor was made entirely out of stone, but the most glaring out-of-place structure was the giant stone pyramid that was the apparent source of the dark light pillar. Despite the fact that it seemed like it was still night time, there was somehow enough light and they could see everything very clearly.

"It's almost like we have come to another country," Beckendorf muttered as he readied his battle-axe.

"Yeah... I think this temple has overwritten this land's original buildings and landscape," Harry said. "Remember, we were at a slight slope when we entered this place, and suddenly everything is even. It looks Aztec, or perhaps Incan? It may come across as a surprise, but I am not too keen on architecture. But who..."

They were interrupted as the dark pillar, which was at the center of the pyramid, suddenly disappeared. A lone figure came out of the pyramid, which they all recognized as the same mage who was attacking them the previous day. She was dressed in all black, and had the same mask she wore on their last encounter.

"Welcome, demigods," said the mage, dropping the mask, much to their shock.

Silena gasped, her eyes widening as she saw a very familiar face. Beckendorf almost dropped the axe he was holding as he recognized her as well.

Harry was the quickest to get over his shock, eyes narrowing in suspicion. There were, after all, numerous methods to assume the face of a friend, and a god could do it very easily.

"Who are you?" Harry questioned, brandishing his sword. "The Laura we know died. The only explanation is that you are either possessing her dead body or wearing her face."

Laura's face twisted into a smile. "Oh? And how would I know about her?"

"Any one can simply take her identity based on our memories," Harry said. "For a god, which I presume you are, it would be super easy."

"Oh no, I am not wearing her face at all, son of Athena," Laura said. "You missed her by about a few minutes. I know that she would be delighted to meet her friends one last time."

"H-how?" Silena asked. "Laura died! Luke told us about how she was killed by Ladon!"

"I know. The truth is she had technically died." the being possessing Laura explained. "The best I could do was implant a part of my divinity into her body to anchor her soul for a few extra years. It was enough for me to prepare this ritual. It wasn't enough, however, to give her an entire life, no matter how much I wanted to."

"You almost sound remorseful," Harry noted, his eyes burning in anger. "You are either attached to her, or a very cruel being who intends to use her against us."

Laura gave a small laugh. "Cruel? No, son of Athena. This isn't cruelty. The way her mother essentially threw her aside was cruel. The way your own mother took all the knowledge of my people without permission is cruel. The way your gods usurped my lands, and the way my people were destroyed was cruel. This… this is justice."

"I was right then," Harry said. "You are not a Greek entity."

"Right you are. I am not Greek," She said. She waved her hand, as the very same mural that this god was trapped in materialized in front of them. "Do you recognize this mural? It depicts two… I suppose we are called Mesoamerican gods. Well, it depicts me and my greatest rival in combat. He would never have resorted to this, you know. He loved you humans. To the point where he essentially ensured that no human life would be sacrificed to the gods! To me! _ME_!"

The immediate tone of anger and fury put the three demigods on edge, with all of them readying themselves for combat.

They were expecting an attack at any moment, but their adversary simply sighed and visibly relaxed. "But none of that matters now. The only things I regret, truly regret, is that your friend Laura had to die...and that none of your gods would ever know that I am the one ending them. Shame… I would have loved to see their reactions if they knew that Tezcatlipoca is the one who will bring them down."

This time, it was Harry who could not hold his tight control on his emotions as his eyes widened and mouth dropped in shock and slight fear, even as Beckendorf and Silena looked at him and Laura, or rather Tezcatlipoca in confusion.

As soon as Harry recognized the god possessing Laura, he couldn't help as a small breath escaped him. It suddenly made sense. The Fidelius. This faked night. The people in stasis. And finally, Tezcatlipoca's motivation. He did not want to accept it, but now that he had all the pieces, assembling the puzzle was all too easy.

"Of course you recognize me, do you not?" Tezcatlipoca said. "The people who were all slaughtered by the invaders… they hailed me as a god of knowledge, amongst other things. No doubt the child of a goddess of knowledge has heard of me."

Harry sighed. His mind tried to search for what he could do… no, wait. That was it. Keep him distracted, and perhaps he would not notice the build up of energy within Harry.

"Tezcatlipoca…" Harry said. "The Aztec god of sorcery, night, and according to their myth, a god of creation. It makes total and complete sense that you want to destroy us all. After all, your own civilization was destroyed as a consequence of Europeans colonizing this continent."

"Oh no, no, no. I do not want to destroy you all. I only wish to destroy the gods," Tezcatlipoca answered.

"Isn't that the same thing?" Silena spoke up. "If you destroy the gods, we would soon perish as well!"

"Do you honestly believe that humans need the gods? What foolishness. My plan simply involves destroying the gods. And I'm sure that your boyfriend knows how I plan to do that."

If the situation wasn't so serious, both Harry and Silena would have blushed. But the former kept his gaze fixed on Laura's face even as Silena and Beckendorf looked at Harry.

"Of course… I was hoping that I was wrong. But I am not, am I? You plan to sacrifice this entire city, turn their very beings into pure magical energy and simply shift the focus of the Fidelius onto something that normally can not be put under the Fidelius," Harry said. "After all, easier to do so rather than cast a Fidelius anew. And say, if Mount Olympus itself was placed under the Fidelius… with all humans and demigods forgetting about the gods, they would lose a lot of their power. Perhaps enough that they would fade."

"Close, but not quite. And just how long do you think you can stall me by making me talk?"

Harry was not surprised that his gambit was caught. After all, his opponent was doing the same thing. But did the god notice the build up of power or was it something else? "However long it takes for _them_ to notice. And you have yet to gather enough magical energy from the ley-lines you've erected your temple on."

Tezcatlipoca chuckled. "It seems we're at a stalemate. You are well aware that you cannot stop me, and are hoping that the gods would notice this anomaly that I have created. After all, if you were sent here by one of them, it is but a matter of time before the others notice, yes? But that does not matter."

"No? Then why hurry?" Harry asked. "Ancient Laws bar them from direct interference in human lives, but to them, you are a foreign entity actively trying to kill them. You have no such protection. Your tone and nonchalance suggests that you have already planned for such an occasion."

"Like I said, that does not matter. I simply need enough to apply the Fidelius onto, like you said, something that normally is impossible to be put under the Fidelius. Such as, say, the very concept of Mythology." Tezcatlipoca said, enjoying the horrified expression that formed on Harry's face, even as the other two were confused.

"B-But if you do that, you will also-"

"Of course I will also fade. But my time was always limited here. I have no worshipers, no one who is left of my civilization. My brethren, even the very god who sealed me, have all moved on. I have absolutely no reason to stay behind. The funny thing is, had I stayed in that mural, I would still be immortal," Tezcatlipoca's voice turned sad at the end of his explanation.

Unfortunately for Harry, Tezcatlipoca noticed the subtle, yet rather powerful build up of energy inside Harry. Inwardly, he narrowed his eyes. _'I see… you plan to use all of your magical energy to completely obliterate the temple and this body. Shame… if I hadn't noticed, it definitely would have worked.'_

Temples were the basis of a god's power. In many ways, they were symbols erected in their name, housing their divinity. To destroy a temple was akin to striking a blow directly against them. Tezcatlipoca could not let that temple be destroyed. It was erected so that he could gain more footing in this world, get some more time before the World itself would get rid of him.

However, he continued to talk.

He needed a little more time, and if Harry were to attack him, or gods forbid, destroy this vessel, his work would be incomplete and they would get away scott-free. No doubt Harry realized this as well. He did not want to use it, but this was his trump card. "Do you even know where you stand?"

"What does that have anything to do with this?" Harry questioned.

"Not surprising given that the Fidelius has taken that knowledge from your mind. But at this very spot, innocent blood was spilled. Not because of war, nor because of disease. Simply the acts of a bloodthirsty, ignorant crowd who persecuted and hung numerous witches, at this very spot."

"And your point?" Harry asked. The spell was almost ready. It was one of the most destructive spells he knew, but it required a lot of 'charge time.' He wasn't simply stalling for the gods to notice, after all. Only a fool would make a singular plan. With one attack, he could-

"As they died," Tezcatlipoca continued, completely uncaring of Harry. "They cursed this land, the very people who condemned them. And as enough souls cursed the same people and lands? Unknowingly, where seven ley-lines intersected? Eventually it manifested as the ultimate curse, a curse against… magic."

With that, a purple wave of magical energy hit them all. Harry fell to his knees as he felt his magic leave him. Sweat began to pour down his face as he shivered. This wasn't magical fatigue. It was almost as if his magic was taken from him, and now there was not a single ounce of magical energy left in him. No, that wasn't accurate either. To best describe was akin to losing a limb.

Tezcatlipoca heaved a sigh. Taking away someone's magic using the various curses that he had accumulated within himself, and now by extension, within Laura's body, wasn't something he wanted to do. Those curses would have overpowered the Fidelius further, which was why he needed them. But now, some of that extra energy had been sacrificed. No matter; he could always gather more from the ley-lines they were on.

Silena and Beckendorf were unaffected, but they could feel the chill run through them as the cursed energy washed over them. They immediately rushed to Harry, helping him stand. Looking at Laura, who's face was expressionless, they knew that they had to do something quick. Harry looked at them before he whispered something.

Harry waved them aside as he stood. "Relax. Only my magic was lost. However, that is not my most powerful tool that I have."

"Oh?" Tezcatlipoca said, with mild interest. He watched as the other two demigods circled around him, readying their weapons. So, a three pronged attack, then? As a last resort? They were getting desperate.

Or perhaps that is what they wanted him to think. Removing his magic must have been getting to Harry, Tezcatlipoca noticed. As a mage's body was quite accustomed to having magical energy, removing it all in one go would always have various side effects. Harry was getting fatigued, and was no doubt making hasty decisions. It would not be long before he loses consciousness and, possibly, his life.

"Despite losing your magic, you still stand? Praiseworthy. It is a shame that you have to die here. I still possess a substantial amount of curses that were left behind. Know that your lives will help usher in a new age for all of humanity. One that is free of gods and their oppression."

"You could have just ended us all with multiple spells that ensure our deaths, yet you went to remove my magic instead… you need us alive, don't you?" Harry asked, readying himself to attack. "After all, you won't kill us directly. You'll let the ritual do it. That way our souls get added to it rather than them entering the Underworld. And… therein lies your error. I wasn't just letting you talk for stalling purposes."

Harry chuckled weakly. The fatigue from losing his magic was beginning to set in. Tezcatlipoca narrowed his eyes as Harry continued to talk. "I was hoping you would slip up somewhere, somehow, in your explanation. And you did. If only you had corrected me on the spell you were going to use rather than what you were going to use it on. The major drawback of the Fidelius. It requires a secret keeper, who must not be the spell-caster. Laura's soul is still somewhere in there, you did not kill her entirely. No, you plan to make her the secret keeper, and then, put her soul in a place where none may reach. A place that once held something far more powerful. Like… the very mural you were trapped in."

"To figure out all of that despite the state you are in is nothing to be scoffed at. But… you've lost already,"Tezcatlipoca said, as another circular wave of energy was released from Laura's body. Beckendorf turned his ax around to defend himself, letting the energy hit the ax. The wave also hit Harry's sword and Silena's daggers.

To their very surprise and fear, the Celestial Bronze crumbled, destroying the 's and Silena's weapons also suffered a similar fate.

_Magic could not affect Celestial Bronze...unless the being trying to do so was a god._

Harry cursed. Sure, Tezcatlipoca may be on borrowed time, however it did not change the fact that he was still a god. He could do that and a lot more. Harry shuddered to think how this could have gone if he didn't need the three of them to be alive till the ritual was complete. Demigods had souls that were a lot more powerful than regular mortal ones. Three demigod souls? No doubt that would compensate the energy Tezcatlipoca was spending to keep them at bay.

Which still did not explain why he did not just… render them unconscious, mutilate them or even render them unable to do anything. Harry did not question it; it might just give the god ideas.

' _Unless… That can't be it… he is that vain?!'_ Harry thought as he realized why they were still conscious. For all his planning and figuring out whatever Harry wanted to do, Tezcatlipoca had kept them conscious for one reason and one reason only.

The god wanted someone, anyone, to witness his deed. Even if it was for a fleeting moment, Tezcatlipoca wanted them to watch in despair.

"Now just stay there, like good little children, till I am done," Tezcatlipoca said, his tone clearly conveying his confidence in his victory. It truly was a shame that they had to die. Though the other two were not doing anything, Harry had accurately figured out what Tezcatlipoca wanted to do.

"Tell me something," Harry said tiredly as he tried to step forward. "You claim to be a god of knowledge, yet you would readily remove millennia worth of it from humanity. Every thing we did, all of our progress, has its roots in myths, no matter how little inspiration they may have in said myths… removing all of mythology from humanity, you would doom us all, no matter what," Harry breathed heavily. "Without that knowledge, we may as well just wait for our deaths. But… you know that, and yet you claim that you work in humanity's interest!"

"Am I not?" Tezcatlipoca asked. "There would be no need for conflict, as all humans won't have any different religious beliefs. No one committing horrible sins in their name. No one misinterpreting the words of a saint or a prophet to fit their own agendas. How is that not a good thing?"

Harry could only walk ever so slowly towards Tezcatlipoca. He no longer had magic. His body was getting more and more tired by the second. His vision was growing hazy, to the point where he could not even see what Silena and Beckendorf were doing.

But unknowingly, Tezcatlipoca had revealed another weakness he had in his current form.

The body he was possessing still had its original soul. That body was still, by all records, still mortal.

Harry could still kill Tezcatlipoca.

He closed his eyes. _'Doing so would kill you, Laura. But… you could not understand. Otherwise you would never have done so.'_

Tezcatlipoca truly believed that he was working for humanity's best interest. But… gods weren't human. They could never understand human struggles, no matter how much they tried to blend in.

They may have created humanity. They may have given humanity all the tools to survive.

They would never truly comprehend the struggles and conflicts of a human. On the flip side, they will also never truly comprehend the pleasures and happiness of a human.

"I see," Harry said simply. "You cannot understand humans, can you? Yes, we despise all of that… but… you would also readily remove all of the happiness from this world. No stories will be told that regale the ancient heroes. No child would have anyone to look up to. No one would be inspired by those who came before. And without that, what makes us who we are? To a god, given you have outlived every single human ever… that is unthinkable. After all, you aren't human. You could never grasp what makes us human. So even though you may have effectively crippled us, you believe that I would just give up. That is why you lose."

"Lose? You can hardly stand. Your friends are confused as to what to do, and I have almost gathered all the energy I need. How am I going to lose?" Tezcatlipoca asked.

Harry continued to walk, somehow feeling as though he had strength to do so. "Like I said: you fail because of your inability to understand humanity. All we need to do to defeat you is to kill your body."

Taking that as a signal, Beckendorf jumped to action. He still had a weapon: the shaft of the ax that was destroyed. He was not sure if he could just kill someone, especially when that someone was technically Laura. But at the very least he could hope and disrupt the god.

"You know what would help?" Silena said as she tried to put as much emotion in her words as possible. "If you could fix the weapons you destroyed. That would make me _soooo_ happy. You want to make me happy, do you not?"

Displaying a surprising amount of strength, Tezcatlipoca simply threw Beckendorf when he got close, throwing him at Silena. He collided into her, sending them both tumbling down.

"Admirable. But you forgot one aspect of Charmspeak. It only works if the victim displays an attraction to you." Tezcatlipoca said.

Harry tried to formulate a plan. He was somehow regaining strength, but it was too slow. He would need to direct them both in a way tha—

' _It seems I need to play a more active role. I was hoping I would not need to. I may not be able to restore your magic fully from here, but I hope this shall suffice.'_

Harry barely had the time to react as the mark on his palm began to glow brightly. By their own accord, Harry's fingers moved, as if they were grabbing something.

He felt the hilt of a sword before it appeared in his hands. The sword was pure white, a little over a 30 inches in length. It radiated with a yellowish white glow before said glow died down.

Tezcatlipoca's eyes widened as he saw that weapon. "How?! H-HOW DO YOU HAVE THAT?!"

Harry did not waste any more time. Feeling as though he was quite energized, he charged at Tezcatlipoca. The god sent another wave of cursed magic towards him, intending to kill him this time instead.

However, the sword simply cut through the cursed wave, leaving Harry completely unaffected.

Harry went for a stab as soon as he got close enough, but Tezcatlipoca dodged. He had sent the wave completely on instinct, and now that he had seen that sword up close, he knew that a single cut would spell his doom.

He could not let Harry know that. All he could do was dodge Harry's swings.

Tezcatlipoca cursed as he ducked under yet another swing. To an untrained eye, they seemed desperate, wild swings. But he knew better. Harry was slowly, but surely learning his patterns and changing his stance and attacks accordingly. Harry was not even letting him counter-attack, no matter how much he wanted to push Harry away.

Without concentrating on the ritual, he could not perform the necessary magic, despite now having gathered more than sufficient energy.

Beckendorf and Silena watched this, before Beckendorf got an idea. He told it to Silena, who nodded.

While Harry and Tezcatlipoca fought, the two of them rushed over to the mural.

Tezcatlipoca grinned to himself as he realized that Harry was slowing down. That energy boost he received from the sword was no doubt running out. He just needed to continue to be on the defensive, avoid the attacks and then he wo—

CRACK!

Tezcatlipoca turned in horror to see that the mural was now cracked in two, and the two remaining demigods at a considerable height, having climbed up a few feet on the pyramid that was his temple. They had no doubt carried it up there, and then dropped it.

In that momentary distraction, Harry slashed Tezcatlipoca's stomach open. The cut was not too deep, but it was enough. Instead of blood, the wound started to leak a purplish black essence that evaporated as soon as it came out of the wound.

Tezcatlipoca screamed as an unimaginable pain surged through him. The cursed energy that he had stored up in this body was his undoing, especially when struck by _that_ sword. Said cursed energy was leaking out of the stomach wound, and was being instantly purified, once again, because of the effect of that sword.

"Y-You!" Tezcatlipoca tried to say, but it was getting hard to speak. He may have just lost, but at least he could try and take Harry out with him. Yes, a simple spell to turn this body into a bomb! One simple explosion, and they'd both, well, three of them, considering Laura, would go out in a blaze of glory.

Not all of the stored magical energy had left this body yet. He could still trigger the explosion with the amount he had left. Purple veins began to appear all over his body as he cast the spell.

Harry's eyes widened at that. He was now too tired to do anything. He looked at Silena and Beckendorf, who had now left the temple and were running towards him. If there were any regrets he felt, it was bringing them along. They didn't need to die here. The second regret was not telling Silena how he felt about her. Sure, she might reject him, but at least she would know.

' _No…_ _you will do no such thing!'_ A voice screamed inside of Tezcatlipoca's body. No! That was Laura! How?! That cursed energy leaving his body, his mural getting destroyed, and the wound from that sword… it was weakening him greatly, to the point where he could no longer keep Laura unconscious.

' _Wait! What are you_ _—_ _'_ Tezcatlipoca tried to ask as he realized something. He began to run, towards the temple. This did not make enough sense! How did she have enough strength in her to do so! And now she was making her own body run towards his temple!

Beckendorf tried to stop her as she ran straight towards them.

"Don't!"

Laura's voice gave him pause, but that was all that she needed to duck under him and keep moving till she was close enough. Laura leaped into the temple, just in the nick of time as her hold on the spell ran out.

She could only hope that Beckendorf, Silena and Harry were far enough away.

White light covered her eyes as the explosion finally happened, destroying the temple along with her.

* * *

Harry's expression was rather grim as he saw the temple explode. He knew that Laura had somehow managed to regain control for just long enough. A tear formed in his eyes, knowing that Beckendorf and Silena were not far enough away. The explosion would kill them.

His own survival was iffy at best, but it would not be the debris from said explosion that would get to him. It would be the resultant shockwave.

Or at least, that was what would have happened had time itself had not stopped.

Unlike the time stasis that Salem was put under, time had stopped for everyone, but himself. Harry could see Beckendorf and Silena trying to run away as fast as possible, their bodies frozen mid-sprint. The temple itself was half-destroyed, rocks floating in air, and light from the explosion covering a considerable portion of the temple.

"That was a close one," A voice next to Harry said. Harry turned around tiredly, to see Merlin standing besides him.

"You were observing the whole time?" Harry asked.

Merlin waved his hand. A flowery smell filled Harry's nose as he felt himself get revitalized.

"Don't ask questions you know the answer to," Merlin replied. "I was hoping that I would not need to send you that sword. But… I suppose I had to."

"This sword?" Harry asked as he looked down at the pure white blade. He did not know what it was made out of. It wasn't Celestial Bronze, Stygian Iron, or any other metal that Harry knew of.

It was then Harry noticed the inscribed name on the flat of the blade.

_Caledfwlch_

The sword Harry was holding, the one he had used to defeat Tezcatlipoca, was perhaps the most famous sword in all of legends. The very sword that a legendary king pulled from the stone: Caliburn.


	9. Chapter 9

"This!" Harry exclaimed, his eyes on the sword. He then looked at Merlin, his eyes wide. "This is! How is this sword even real?!"

"Why would it be fake?" Merlin asked. "Most assume that it was lost to annuls of time after Arthur's death. Other legends claim that it was lost and then Arthur would go on to receive the Excalibur. And some claim that the two are the same sword. But… the truth is that I kept this sword till I felt it would be needed again. If I was correct or not, I suppose only time will tell."

"I assume you want it back?" Harry asked.

"Not in the slightest. Caliburn would not have allowed you to wield her if you were unworthy of it. There's a reason why it is also called the Sword of Selection," Merlin said.

"But the stories say that whoever is worthy of it was also the king of Britain," Harry muttered. He was going to question the 'will be' part, but he had a gut feeling that Merlin wouldn't answer that.

"Harry, old men that appear in dreams and distribute swords is no basis for any system of government," Merlin said.

"I suppose…" Harry said.

"Really? You didn't get that? Monty Python and the… you know what, that's not too important. In all seriousness, no, simply possessing that sword did not make Arthur king. He was already the son of Uther, the previous king, remember? Only not raised in royalty," Merlin explained.

Harry was silent for a while as he gazed at the pure white sword. "Just what is this sword? A single cut and all of that cursed energy was being purified."

"That is a rather difficult question," Merlin replied. "One could say that the sword is essentially the very concept of 'Purity' and 'Goodness' given form. As for what it does and is capable of? Well, I'll leave that for you to discover."

"I see," Harry said, looking at Merlin. "But Tezcatlipoca? Was he correct? About humanity not needing the gods?"

"A rather bulky question," Merlin said. "To fully understand that, you would need to understand gods and why they fade. And of course, why gods exist in the first place. Not everything is clear, and not everything meant to be revealed to mortals. Perhaps the actual question should not be whether humanity needs the gods, but rather if humanity can evolve and grow without the gods."

"And you are not going to tell me." Harry said. It was not a question, but a guess.

"Ah, but whats the fun in explaining everything?" Merlin questioned with a smile. "Somethings, especially about gods, is best left to the gods. Like you said, gods do not understand humanity. But… humanity also cannot understand the gods. Even you demigods, who are the bridge between the two, can only do so much with either beings."

Harry then noted something. "You talk about the gods in the third person. As if you don't consider yourself to be one."

Merlin chuckled. "Maybe I did speak too much."

Harry narrowed his eyes. "Who… or what are you?"

"Hmmm. I could be a god. Or I could be a wizard who was so powerful that he attained godhood through various deeds that most, if not all, would consider impossible. Or maybe I am a manifestation of all the legends surrounding the being that is 'Merlin' given form because enough people believe in his existence," Merlin said, before he smiled mischievously. "Or maybe I am just pulling your leg and want you to believe what you want."

Harry sighed, knowing that Merlin would not tell him the exact truth of his nature. Or was really just joking.

"Is that how you stopped time? Because there must be some story, a tale somewhere that Merlin could do so?"

"Or, perhaps time has not frozen at all, and you're actually unconscious and this is a dream I created," Merlin replied. "More importantly, I wonder if you realize the importance of your actions here. Because Tezcatlipoca was correct in a way. Humanity does not need the gods for survival, but not in the way he thought."

Harry was silent for a while.

"All gods are meant to fade eventually, right? When their respective roles in this world are completed? Or if their sphere of influence is simply transferred over to another god and therefore there is no further need of them existing?" Harry asked.

"I just said, leave that to th–"

"Humor me for a bit," Harry interrupted Merlin. "If that is true, then a god fading away is but a natural phenomenon. If it happens naturally, gradually over time, then this transition is seamless, without any adverse effects. But… Tezcatlipoca's plan would have accelerated this well beyond what the world could handle. By making humanity forget about all of mythology, weaker lesser known gods would have faded immediately. More powerful ones wouldn't be spared either. Maybe they don't fade immediately, maybe they realize what is wrong and immediately fix it. But the damage done would be permanent."

Merlin simply chuckled. "Quite the theory you've got there."

"But is it inaccurate?" Harry questioned.

"I will tell you this. Had Tezcatlipoca succeeded, he would have indeed caused a cataclysmic event of a magnitude enough to destroy all life. Not just the gods. Not just the monsters. _Everything that existed_. That is why he required so much time building up the magical energy, and also required all the souls residing in Salem, along with all the curses placed in the same exact spot where over hundreds of innocents were hanged, with the townspeople cheering such an atrocious act," Merlin said.

That threw Harry in for a loop. It wasn't the fact apparently non magicals could curse a place. It was mostly a side effect of so many people damning a place with their dying breaths. That held weight even if the person doing the damning wasn't magical, especially in a place like Salem, where multiple ley-lines intersected. "But the amount of people hanged in Salem wer–"

"Recorded history is not always the accurate history, and sometimes, legends about something, somewhere and/or someone, given enough, what is the word, I suppose _power_ , is the closest, can influence the nature of things," Merlin said. "Even Ancient Greek legends are subject to this. Did your mother curse Arachne, even if there was such a woman? Or was that the imagination of the Roman poet Ovid? The truth of that is inconsequential, as when a sufficient amount of people started believing in it, even said goddess will testify that she did curse a girl named Arachne for being arrogant."

"Are you telling me that the arachnophobia that me and my siblings share happened simply because a large amount of people believed that a child of Athena must be afraid of spiders because she cursed a mortal to become one? And therefore every spider wants revenge because of that?" Harry asked. It was a very incredulous thing in his opinion.

Merlin didn't answer, but rather chose to change the subject. "But now it has been successfully averted, with you and your friends having saved the day and all that. I suppose as a reward, the least I can do is ensure all of your safety."

"What about Laura?"

"She is dead, Harry," Merlin answered. "Tezcatlipoca was absolutely correct in that she had been dead for a long time. She was merely existing on borrowed time. And don't worry about the god either. With his temple destroyed and his host also gone, he cannot sustain his essence any longer. Either his conscience is spread too thin to matter, or he faded and joined the rest of the Mesoamerican pantheon."

Harry closed his eyes in a moment of sadness. He was certain that despite her sacrificing herself in the end, she would not end up in Elysium. Especially if Merlin was correct in that she aided – either knowingly or not – in an apocalyptic plot. And the whole cheating her own death thing.

The best he could do was send her soul two drachma as was the custom.

* * *

Harry opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was the very familiar ceiling of the Athena Cabin. It was the same bed he slept in every single night in Camp. He groggily sat up in bed, noting that Caliburn was propped up on the wall opposite the bed, with a note attached to the hilt.

He felt well rested, as if he had slept a good two or three days and nights.

For a moment Harry stared at the sword. It was a beautiful sword. The blade itself was pure white, with the hilt being a brilliant golden. Harry had no idea who or what forged the weapon, but they certainly were not human. The sword was way too… perfect to be made by human hands.

Harry grabbed the note, opening the folded piece of paper.

_I forgot to tell you this: Caliburn_ _relies on its wielder to determine what is 'good' and 'pure',_ _despite being the very embodiment of the two_ _. After all, the definition of what is considered good is completely different for you than it was to Arthur_ _._ _Different times and all that._ _But, does that mean that it will selectively target the evil inside_ _a being_ _? Or will it simply work as_ _a_ _sword does? Well, that is not for me to say._

The note had no name as to who wrote it, but it was obvious in Harry's mind.

Harry still had a lot of questions that needed answered, however. The most important one: what exactly had happened on that quest. While it was certainly possible that Luke came out unaffected, unknowing of any of this, but he would be the only one who would know.

Then there was Luke's story when he had returned.

" _It happened so fast," Luke said sadly as he recalled the events at the Garden of Hesperides. "One moment, Ladon was ignoring us. The next, it had tore into Peter and Laura. If it hadn't been Peter who pushed me out of the way, I would have ended up the same."_

That was it. No details about the exact way the events took place. No one at Camp had questioned it then. No one wanted to reopen the wounds. It was obvious then he was suffering quite a bit.

But Laura was alive. While she spoke nothing of Luke or Peter or what happened, or even how she came to be under Tezcatlipoca's control, she had somehow survived. No, not just survived. She wanted vengeance, and was angry enough to ally with a foreign god.

Well, technically a local god, the Olympians were the foreign gods, but that was beside the point.

And the more he thought of it, the more he realized something.

Why did Ladon stop at two of three?

All three of them were intruders to the hundred headed dragon. He would not stop at two. Unless he was _made_ to stop at two.

Garden of Hesperides … Harry only knew what was held there as much as everyone else: the Golden Apple Tree, that was gifted to Hera. Luke was supposed to retrieve such an apple. A recreation of one of Herakles' Twelve Labors.

Except this particular Labor was where Herakles received help from a very unlikely source.

Atlas, the Titan General.

Herakles had to free Atlas from his prison, where he held up the Sky, separating it from the Earth. Then, Atlas agreed to get the apples for Herakles, but had declined to retake his position under the Sky. As any previous Labor where Herakles was helped was considered void by King Eurystheus, Herakles had to ensure that no one would ever know of this, and was successfully able to put Atlas back into his prison.

The legend made Harry think. As Merlin had told him, just because it was recorded as such did not mean that was the accurate.

And if any of the three demigods who left for that quest were offered something by Atlas to get him freed? And even one of them agreed? It would certainly explain why Ladon chose to ignore Luke entirely.

Harry shook himself. What was he thinking? Luke committing treason? Sure, the son of Hermes was… critical of the gods, but he would not go so far as to kill his own brother and Laura, right?

But now? Harry could not help but think if that was supposed to mean that Luke had some hand in that. As the only surviving member of that quest, surely Luke must have known something, right?

Harry was now put in a very uncomfortable position as he thought about every single scenario.

The very first one was plain and simple. It had happened just as Luke had claimed it had. For reasons that even Luke did not know, Ladon stopped after killing Laura and Peter. And Luke survived the ordeal without knowing anything about Laura and Tezcatlipoca. Harry personally hoped that this was the case. That way, Luke was still innocent and had done nothing wrong.

Second was slightly worse. That fateful day, something had possessed Luke the same way Tezcatlipoca had possessed Laura. That being was still inside of Luke, and was careful enough to not get noticed by the Camp's boundary or Chiron. That meant that Luke was still being possessed, and needed to be dealt accordingly.

Third was even worse. Luke was being manipulated by that 'something' but was not being possessed. An argument could be made that he was still innocent, despite having committed treason of his own volition.

But the last scenario was what Harry did not want to be true at all. There was nothing manipulating or possessing Luke. The events had took place as exactly as his current theories about the quest presented. Luke had really betrayed everyone. He had directly killed his Cabin mates. Mostly because he must have been promised something that Luke truly desired. Like power. Or perhaps freedom from the shadow of the gods. Or…

* * *

" _Huh? Why are you thanking me?" Luke asked. His legs, left arm and torso was covered in bandages, and some bruises were visible on his face as well. The right arm was placed in a cast. At least the Camp infirmary bed was comfortable._

" _Because if it weren't for you, Annabeth says that she would have died multiple times in the wild," Harry replied. Luke and Annabeth had come into the Camp two days ago. There was a third member to their party, but she had given her life to save her friends. It had been two days since Luke was brought past the boundary, when he had fallen unconscious. He had woken up just now._

" _What's it to you?" Luke asked. He did not know why this black haired boy was sitting beside his bed that morning. He had told Luke that Annabeth was mostly uninjured, and was sleeping in the Athena Cabin._

" _Oh right. I didn't introduce myself, did I?" Harry asked sheepishly. "I'm Harry Potter. Annabeth's older brother. Well, half-brother technically."_

" _And... Thalia?" Luke asked softly after a moment of silence._

_Harry's expression turned sad. "She…. Her father turned her into the Pine Tree._ 'If protecting your friends is your wish, then protect everyone you shall' _was what the entire Camp heard that night. Chiron states that her sacrifice created a boundary that surrounds the Camp that keeps all monsters and non-demigods out."_

_The way Luke broke down after that would be embedded in Harry's memories forever._

* * *

Harry shook himself out of the memories as he walked to the Big House, ignoring the looks of confusion that other Campers were sending him. No doubt they were curious as to how he got back into the Camp.

He had yet to meet up with Silena or Beckendorf, or even Malcolm. To him, determining Luke's status was a tad bit more important. At best, he was being paranoid and Luke was innocent. At worst, there was a traitor amongst them, and needed to be dealt with.

Caliburn was strapped to his side, after Harry had conjured a scabbard for the sword. Because of this, no one was questioning how Harry had a sword that was not Celestial Bronze, as they could not see the actual weapon itself. He had no desire to hide the sword from his fellow Campers, but he also did not want to be interrupted and side tracked till he reached the Big House.

Curiously, the metal from which Caliburn was made up of was receptive to magic, as Harry had experimented by trying to place a temporary enchantment on the sword. Nothing special, just an enchantment that allowed him to swing the sword faster without sacrificing strength.

That would certainly be very useful in a lot of situations, Harry idly thought to himself as he neared the Big House.

* * *

" _You cheated!" Luke said, the practice sword having fallen out of his hands and Harry's own sword at his throat._

_Harry chuckled as he sheathed his sword. It had been a year since he and Annabeth came to Camp. "Nope. Its not cheating if I use everything and anything at my disposal. I may not be able to affect Celestial Bronze with my magic, but the hilt itself is made of leather, plain and simple. Heating it up just as you were about to disarm me is fair play."_

" _Still cheating, I should have won!" Luke said. "And I got a nasty burn on my palm!"_

_Luke was still grumbling about it as they went to the infirmary to get it treated. While both of their sword styles were based around speed, and not strength, it had come down to who was faster, and Luke was easily faster than Harry. He was not expecting Harry to use magic, however._

" _I don't understand how this can taste like the cookies my mother would make," Luke whispered as he ate the ambrosia._

" _What?" Harry asked, not having heard Luke properly. He had spoken too softly for Harry to hear._

" _Huh? Nothing," Luke replied._

" _I thought you said something about your mother," Harry said._

" _It's. Nothing." Luke said firmly._

" _Okay, jeez," Harry said. "I can see that you don't want to talk about that."_

" _Yeah. I don't." Luke's tone made it clear that he wanted this topic to drop._

* * *

"Harry? How did you get here?" Chiron said as he saw Harry approach. He was sitting in the porch in his wheelchair, a book on his lap.

"Merlin sent us back when our task was complete," Harry said, sitting down in a chair in front of Chiron when the Centaur gestured for him to do so.

"I see," Chiron said. It was curious that he did not feel anyone or anything get past the boundary that surrounded the Camp, but did not put it past Merlin to know how to bypass it entirely. "So… what happened on the quest?"

Harry gave Chiron the full report, sparing no details.

Chiron was silent for a while as he processed everything that Harry told him.

"This is concerning," Chiron stated. "The fact that it happened at this point, with the Master Bolt missing is obviously no coincidence. At least Merlin was able to see it and able to act through the three of you."

"There's something else," Harry said.

"The matter of how Laura survived, despite Luke having claimed otherwise?" Chiron guessed. When Harry nodded, the Centaur continued. "It is of course possible that Luke was unaware of this, and assumed that she died based on what he experienced."

"I considered that… but he also told us that Ladon was responsible. If nothing else, I want to know Ladon's behavior to see the full picture," Harry said.

Chiron looked a bit confused. Luke never told the Centaur that, but supposed that Luke would tell his friends more than he told his teacher. "Ladon protects the Tree above all else. Granted, Luke was sent to retrieve the Golden Apple, and it is perfectly possible that it could have gone after Luke given that he wanted an Apple. But it would not pursue him if he left the Tree alone."

Harry closed his eyes in thought. "And Luke would've backed off and decided to abort the quest if it had just killed – in his perspective that is – both of his quest mates."

"That is what I assume, yes," Chiron said. "Remember, Luke never even got a single Golden Apple. So Ladon had no reason to further pursue him after he backed off."

Harry nodded as he took that in. But for some reason there was still something that was bugging him in the back of his head. Like a thought that he simply could not get rid of. It was more of a hunch that anything else. A baseless accusation, perhaps, but something that he just had to confirm.

Maybe it was his pride that was telling him that he was not, could not be, wrong. Maybe it was paranoia that there was a possible murderer amongst them. Maybe it was a desire to know exactly what happened in that ill fated quest as a way to pinpoint exactly what wenn wrong and what he, or anyone else, could do in the future to avoid that.

Or maybe it was a mixture of all of the above.

"But… that quest was a recreation, or rather supposed to be a recreation, of Herakles' Labor, right? And even Herakles struck a deal with none other than the Titan General. What are the odds that Luke had a similar plan?" Harry asked.

Chiron narrowed his eyes. "Harry… I know that seeing a friend who was supposed to be dead working with a god from another pantheon must have been traumatizing. But just because Laura happened to betray us, and it happened as a result of that quest does not necessarily mean that Luke has done something similar."

"I know. I may be very well acting on a hunch. But its been bugging me constantly. What if he is…" Harry trailed off. Chiron gave him a moment as he collected his thoughts. "I just can't help but wonder what really happened in that quest."

"You want to know why Laura could turn her back on us," Chiron guessed. "And you need Luke to be innocent, in this mess, as you don't want to feel betrayal. I suppose it is to be expected, in a sense. After all the only reason betrayal hurts is because it only comes from the ones closest to us."

Harry nodded. If nothing else, he needed to be convinced that Luke had done nothing wrong.

"I think I should just directly talk to Luke instead," Harry said as he got up.

"Of course," Chiron said. "And Harry, do be careful. Regardless of whether you are right or not, it may just drive a wedge between the two of you."

Harry nodded as he left.

Chiron sighed to himself. _'Giving him Caliburn… what are you thinking, Merlin? There_ _is_ _a reason why Zeus specifically told you not to give_ _such a powerful weapon_ _to demigods or mortals…'_

* * *

" _Hey," Luke said softly as he sat down beside Harry. They were sitting in a clearing near the Zeus' Fist. "I know that you must want some time to yourself, but we were all worried. You haven't said a thing to anyone since the past four days… especially after…"_

_After Rahul died was left unsaid._

_Harry just stared ahead, not reacting to Luke's presence._

" _Look… I know more than anyone what it feels to lose someone close to you," Luke continued. "And, I know just how much it hurts. But a part of mourning is also moving on."_

_Harry looked at Luke with a piercing glare. "Move on? Like you have? By talking to a tree nearly every single day?"_

" _That was low, Harry," Luke said with an angered look of his own. He knew that Harry was not in the right sense of mind, and probably regretted even saying that, but it stung nonetheless._

" _Not as low as telling me to move on from my own brother's death apparently," Harry said in response._

" _I am just trying to cheer you up!" Luke said. He took a few breaths to calm himself. "Besides, she was not allowed to pass on! Her father could not even accept her sacrifice so he turned her and trapped her in that tree instead! And there is no way to save her from such a fate! At least Rahul was allowed to go to Elysium! Thalia is just trapped in the Pine Tree, forever!"_

_Luke could not help himself as he ranted. He knew that his anger could be explosive at times, and unfortunately it had exploded at the worst possible time._

" _She was metamorphosed by a god. That's reversible if said god wishes it to be so, or a powerful enough being does so," Harry said lowly. "So, there's still a chance, no matter how low, that you might see her again. But Rahul? He's gone. For good. And if he chose to reincarnate… I won't ever meet him even when I eventually cross the River."_

_Luke looked at Harry with a surprised expression. Both of them were still angry at each other, but now Luke was curious. It was almost as if Thalia could be saved. But that could not be true, right?_

" _What do you mean?" Luke could not help but ask. "What being could do so?"_

_Harry humph'd. "Like I said, a powerful enough being. They would need to be more, at least as powerful as Zeus himself._ _But why would anyone go against the wishes of the King even if you found someone who fit this criteria? And would want to help a demigod?"_

_Luke was silent. "What if I offer them something?"_

_Harry said nothing. He doubted that Luke had anything of value to such a powerful being. He was certain of that. Not like Luke would go so far as to…_

* * *

' _...sell his very soul,'_ Harry completed his thought as he approached Luke in the weapons training arena. It seemed that a Hermes training session was completed, given that Luke was putting away all the equipment that they had used.

The rest of the Cabin members had seemingly left, or were leaving. Harry gave the leaving ones a halfhearted hi's and hello's as he made his way to Luke.

"Hey, Harry!" Luke said with a warm look as he greeted Harry. "I heard that you were back! Even met Beckendorf in the forge. He did say that you were giving a report to Chiron, though."

That threw Harry in for a loop. He had not even met Beckendorf after he arrived in Camp. Deciding to address that later, he asked the thing that was nagging the back of his mind.

"Luke… we met Laura in our quest." Harry stated simply.

To his credit, Luke showed no emotion or expression on his face, except that his face turned blank. "I… see."

"She wanted revenge against those that hurt her," Harry said. He had purposely worded it like that, wondering if Luke would take the bait.

"Then why are you coming to me?" Luke asked.

"Because… I need to know exactly what happened on that quest," Harry said. Given that Luke did not take the bait, Harry decided to drop all pretense. "And I need to know if you had any hand in the way she turned out."

Luke was once again silent for a while before he started to chuckle. The chuckle turned into a laugh that put Harry on edge. He kept his arm on his sword, ready to draw if Luke did anything.

"Of course I could not fool you forever," Luke said. "Always observing every little detail. And Laura could not keep her mouth shut too."

Harry immediately drew Caliburn as Luke suddenly drew his own sword and lunged at him.

Luke's Celestial Bronze/Steel sword, that Harry had not seen before, clashed against Harry's pure white blade.

"Fancy weapon you have got there," Luke stated as they clashed.

"What did you do, Luke?" Harry pressed on.

"What do you think? A simple enough deal," Luke said with a crazed smile.

Harry know knew that Luke was either brainwashed or possessed. His mannerisms were completely different from the Luke he knew.

"So… you finally found a powerful enough being to undo Thalia's metamorphosis like we talked about that night? I suppose the Titan General would be powerful enough!" Harry asked. "And what did that cost? Your soul?"

For the first time, Luke gained a bit of confusion as he tried to break Harry's guard. He had the Son of Athena on the defensive, but knew Harry's fighting techniques well enough that Harry could still turn this around if he wanted to.

"What are you on about? You never told me anything of the sort!"

It was Harry's turn to be confused. But given that Luke was still battling him, Harry decided to address that first. Harry blocked an incoming slash with Luke's sword. His reflexes were still quick enough that he could easily parry it, but Luke did not give him the opportunity to punish.

"Like my new sword?" Luke said tauntingly. "It has both Celestial Bronze and tempered steel! The combination, along with its enchantments, will be more than sufficient to give me the upper hand!"

Harry narrowed his eyes. A long time ago, Harry had told Luke that he could not affect Celestial Bronze with magic, which was why he had heated up the sword's hilt. So why would Luke tell him his weapon's singular weakness in an attempt to intimidate him…

… _unless that particular conversation never happened in the first place._

The fact that it was enchanted presented its own set of problems, but those were minor as compared to something as transfiguring Celestial Bronze. Of course, Harry did not want to transifigure Luke's sword at all – even though he could do something, anything, to the steel that was blended in with the Celestial Bronze.

There was still a chance that Harry had told Luke that Celestial Bronze could not be affected by magic, and Luke was just trying to goad him into trying to do something like that again. Especially if he had something to counter his magic.

Harry did need to do something about Luke. He wasn't acting like himself, which gave him a hint that he was being possessed. The fact that Luke was fighting to kill told him plenty. Even if the memories he had were inaccurate, the feelings and emotions in them were not.

"Why–" Harry tried to ask, only to be interrupted by Luke as their swords clashed.

"–should it not be obvious?" Luke answered in an even tone. His eyes conveying the anger. "They keep hurting those around us. Not just us demigods. They use us and then throw us away when they've had their fun! Why should I fight for them?"

"So you would instead ally yourself with who? The Titans?" Harry asked, his own anger rising as they both tried to gain an upper hand. The two separated for a bit, their blades aimed at each other.

"They did promise me that I would bring about an age where no mortal would ever be hurt by the gods and their false promises!" Luke answered.

"False promises? And what guarantee do you have that any Titan would hold up their end of the bargain?" Harry asked.

"Please! This is one problem that not even you can solve!" Luke growled. "The corruption of the gods runs very deep!"

Harry chuckled. He couldn't help himself. "A problem not even I can solve, huh? Well, whatever the answer is, the definite wrong answer is to ally with the beings that saw humans as entertainment and liked to keep us ignorant."

"Perhaps that is better than knowing things you shouldn't!" Luke said angrily. "Such knowledge can drive someone to their death!"

Harry gave him a solemn look. "Is that what happened to your mother?"

Luke for once did not respond, but charged Harry again. His movements and attacks were no longer measured and controlled. Harry struggled a bit to answer in kind, but quickly realized that Luke was too angry to fight with a proper form. He was swinging and slashing wildly.

Seeing his chance to subdue Luke, Harry struck.

Caliburn slashed away at Luke, drawing blood.

Harry did not mean to. He only wanted to disarm. But with Luke moving so wildly, erratically, Harry was off in his aim. And that meant that Caliburn slashed across Luke's chest.

Luke stumbled back, staring at a horrified Harry in disbelief. A painful scream tore from his throat.

It was almost inhuman. Harry tried to ignore the scream as he rushed towards Luke as he fell, catching him before he fell to the ground. He gently lowered Luke to the ground, to administer first aid. Harry made sure to kick away Luke's sword.

Tears stung at his eyes as he opened up Luke's Camp shirt, tearing it to see the extent and depth of the wound.

To Harry's surprise, however, a gold liquid began to pour from the wound on Luke's chest. It quickly dissipated as soon as it came out from the wound. Luke began to scream harder as he was suddenly enveloped in a blackish purple aura. Harry tried not to stumble backwards at the absolute _malice_ in that aura.

It was no other way to describe it. It was permeating the air. It made Harry sick to the core. He needed to do something, any–

Caliburn. The sword was the crystallization of all the good and pure in the world, according to Merlin. He held the sword and cut through the aura, this time ensuring that Luke won't be harmed any further by his own hands.

The effect was instantaneous. Caliburn's innate properties got rid of the malice and the aura that surrounded Luke.

_But, does that mean that it will selectively target the evil inside_ _a being_ _?_

Those words echoed in Harry's mind.

Harry had, at first, discarded the words. He thought Merlin was just being Merlin and trying to play games as he had with the whole 'am I a god or simply legend given form' thing. The fact that Merlin did not give a clear answer about that also infuriated him to no end. Perhaps as a result of being born from a Goddess of Knowledge, Harry just had to have all the answers.

This had apparently confirmed that.

Caliburn had somehow removed the evil in Luke.

Or so Harry hoped as he leaned beside Luke. With a quick spell, Harry first closed the wound on Luke's chest. Harry took his wrist in his hand, trying to feel for a pulse. It was there, but faint.

Harry breathed a heavy sigh. "Thank the gods," he muttered under his breath. He had not killed Luke.

"Harry?"

Harry turned around to see Chiron, and Mr. D standing behind him and Luke. Both looked very serious, and Mr. D in particular looked like he wanted to turn both Harry and Luke into grapevines and be done with it.

"What happened?" Chiron questioned, his eyes narrowed.

* * *

"Took him long enough to realize that memories are also a form of recorded history, don't you think?" Merlin asked in an amused tone as he observed the two demigods from his own home.

Well, calling it a home was a bit of a stretch. This place, which was essentially a large grassland with a few gentle hills and rivers, seemed like it could not exist anywhere on Earth. It was too pure, too untouched by humans. The sky was a clear blue, but there was no sun anywhere. Yet, the time felt as if it was constantly stuck in the morning, with enough light to reflect that.

"You were out of line!" Athena growled as she glared at Merlin. "Who gave you the right to play around in my son's head?!"

"Consider it a reward for saving all of us," Merlin replied.

"His reward was more than sufficient, you letting him keep that sword," Athena said. Her anger towards Merlin had not diminished in the slightest.

"And the sword allowed him to save his friend from a very, very cruel fate. You and your father may ignore the obvious signs, but my eyes are not fooled by the slightest. This allowed us to get rid of one pawn, with no casualties."

"Even if that is the case, He would have contingencies," Athena muttered. She, too, had seen the signs, but did not want to believe.

"Of course He does. But you are aware of Caliburn's special properties are you not?" Merlin asked with a smug grin. "One less fragment of His in the wild now."

Athena of course knew. Caliburn was a special sword. Created by the Lady of the Lake – a goddess who had long since faded – it was the very concept of 'good' and 'pure' given form, and also as a result of the sword relying on its user to define what is 'good' and 'pure', it would easily destroy anything that the user perceived as evil and impure.

No exceptions.

Even gods and monsters, who were affected by mortal perceptions, would be very much affected by Caliburn's properties. For this reason, Zeus had ordered Merlin to never give the sword to any demigod or mortal after Arthur died.

"...That is besides the point. No matter the reasons or justifications behind your actions, I can not and will not let this go unpunished. You messed with my Harry's mind!"

"Ah, there is that beautiful fury of yours," Merlin said with a light chuckle, his eyes glowing. "If only _that statue_ could capture that… such a shame. That blank look, or that sculpture in its entirety, does not do your beauty justice at all."

Merlin escaped with a louder laugh as Athena's mind crashed due to the sheer anger at his revelation.


	10. Chapter 10

"All of that is a bit hard to believe, don't you think?" Mr. D said as he and Chiron heard Harry's tale of what happened.

They were all in the infirmary, with Luke's unconscious body on one of the beds. The wound had long since healed, and Chiron could not find anything physically wrong with him.

"Regardless, we have to wait until Luke wakes up to really know of this," Chiron said. "We must hear his side as well. If nothing else, it might shed some more light on this."

"Will it?" Mr. D said with an uninterested tone. "Bah, they don't pay me enough for this. Kick them both out, I say. Be done with it once and for all."

Harry was silent as Mr. D walked out, leaving him and Chiron alone.

"Don't worry, he doesn't actually have the authority to expel someone from the Camp," Chiron said after a small awkward silence. "He may be the director, but his authorities are extremely limited. Otherwise you all would be kicked out by now for the slightest offence. The thing with Mr. D is–"

"He's a god," Harry spoke up. "That is what his thing is. No matter how wise or idiotic they may be, gods are not meant to be humanity's guides. That is why they never interfere in a way that reshapes the course of human history. We believe that they should have prevented all wars. Prevented all the destruction and unfairness in the world. Or made it so that humans would be content and happy all around. But that is not the case. That was never meant to be the case. These are all _human_ issues, meant to be solved by _humans_. Not gods. But we blame them anyways. Because it is easy to do so. The truth is... you simply wanted to blame your father for whatever happened to your mother. Not once did you think about what your own selfishness might do to others. You simply sought the easiest, most stupid solution to a complex problem!"

"Harry," Chiron cut in with narrowed eyes. "Are you aware of what happened to May Castellan?"

Harry shook his head. "Merlin implanted several ideas and memories in my brain about conversations and interactions with Luke that may or may not have happened. I am still sorting through them, trying to differentiate what really happened from what Merlin implanted." He chuckled. "I did not even know her name until you just told me now."

"Chiron..." Luke said weakly. "What happened to my mother? How do _you_ know her name?"

Chiron sighed. "You knew he was awake..." Chiron said as he rubbed his forehead.

"His breathing pattern changed around the time Mr. D left. I am surprised you did not notice yourself," Harry answered.

Chiron decided to address that later. "Luke... this is very important. What happened in that quest? I want full details, start to finish. Leave nothing out."

"No," Luke said, glaring at the centaur. "I want to know about my mother first."

Chiron sighed tiredly. "Lord Hermes specifi–"

"Who cares what he wants?! He abandoned her! He abandoned ME! He does not get any rights to say about what I want to know!" Luke said angrily.

Harry could not help himself. He chuckled. "Abandoned you? How?"

Luke turned his attention to Harry. "What do you mean how?! He was never there for me! He let my mother grow progressively worse when he could have done something about it! He–"

"Ensured that you would run into Thalia and Annabeth," Harry cut in. "Made it so that you would somehow, against all odds, find the Camp. Sure, Grover might have been the one to take you three here, but before then? Not like any of you had a map, or even any sense of direction. But as the God of Travellers, it would have been very easy for him to simply ensure that the path you take would be the most efficient way in getting you to Camp, where you would be safe."

Luke was silent once again as Chiron nodded. He could see what Harry was trying to do, so he let him.

Harry continued. "Yes, he did not raise you. Yes, he was never directly present in your life. But the same can be said for all seventy four demigods present in Camp! But you know another difference? None of our parents even gave us a single personal quest. Does not matter if it was some new, original quest or a recreation of Herakles's Labors. Had you focused on the smallest of details that proves that he cares rather than the times he was not physically present, maybe you would not even be in this mess!"

"Then what of my mother! He could have–"

"There was nothing that Lord Hermes could have done," Chiron said softly. "The truth is, your mother was cursed by some thing very ancient, something that not even Lord Hermes had any knowledge of. Even I was unaware of it until your mother was cursed."

"Like I said," Harry said. "It is easy to blame. If your mother was cursed, then there is always a chance that the curse is removable. That just means there's something that needs to be researched."

"Luke..." Chiron said, his eyes turning sharp. "What happened in the Garden of Hesperides? Spare absolutely no details."

Luke turned his misty eyes away from both Harry and Chiron.

" _Young demigod... you seem to harbor much hatred directed at the gods," said the hulking figure that was the Titan General Atlas. "But... what if I told you that there is a way to get your revenge?"_

" _How do you know?" Luke asked. Peter and Laura looked at him in confusion._

" _Don't listen to him! He is just trying to–"_

_With a simple glare, Peter's mouth slammed shut. Even Laura seemed to be frozen in fear. Behind them, all hundred of Ladon's heads were glaring at them._

" _They killed your friend, made your mother go insane... surely you want revenge?" Atlas continued._

_Everything seemed to fade away for Luke the more Atlas spoke. He found himself nodding. It was almost as if he was no longer in control of his own actions._

" _No, not just that. Thalia can never rest, can she? Her soul is forever trapped within that tree," Atlas said with a smile. "No Elysium for her, despite her heroic deeds. Surely that makes you angry, wanting to get back at those who wronged her. Perhaps, I can tell you how to get revenge. And strike back at those pretenders who call themselves the Rulers of the West."_

"...and then something was implanted in me," Luke said quietly as tears freely ran down his eyes. "It made me ki–" he choked out a sob. "I pushed Peter and Laura into Ladon..."

Chiron had a rather blank face as he heard Luke's story. Harry seemed to be correct. Luke had evil in him, literally. Caliburn exorcised something out of Luke. As to what that something was, Chiron had his suspicion, but hoped it was not true.

"Luke," Chiron said heavily. "Are you aware of what it was?"

Luke nodded slightly. "It was a fragment of his. My great-grandfather's fragment."

Harry's breath hitched as did Chiron's.

"What else did you do while under his influence?" Chiron questioned. "I want the full details. Harry, use any legillimency you want to get the information out of his mind if he doesn't. And if you cannot, then I will simply have to get your sister to do it instead."

Chiron's tone scared both Harry and Luke. It was a kind of a tone that a hardened general would have, not the kind teacher and guide that Chiron regularly was. It made Harry wonder just how much of that was just a front and which was his real self.

Luke said nothing for a while. "The Master Bolt..."

"Of course it was..." Harry whispered under his breath.

Chiron closed his eyes in deep thought. "Lord Zeus would not be pleased...even if we make the case that you were controlled by Him, there would be severe consequences. Where is the Bolt now, Luke?"

"...I do not know."

Chiron turned to Harry. "Harry, get inside his mind."

"No, I literally do not!" Luke spoke up. "I was caught! By Ares! He took the Bolt from me!"

"Then why was it not returned?!" Chiron asked, not believing Luke.

Harry's eyes widened. "Do you not realize? A war will break out amongst the Olympians. As a, no, _the_ god of War, he would be empowered beyond anything."

Chiron rubbed his forehead. "To think that Lord Ares would betray his own father..."

"Wait. Before you do anything, didn't you send Annabeth and Percy into Hades for the same?" Luke asked softly. "Shouldn't we inform them?"

Chiron shook his head. "That is their quest. That is for them to discover and handle. I will not inform them of this. And you should be more worried about yourself. Lord Zeus will most likely kill you himself, regardless of whether you were in control of your actions or not."

Harry turned to Chiron with an incredulous expression. "What do you mean it is for them to discover? This is far too important for some nonsense Camp traditions!"

"That is how it has always been," Chiron said with an air of finality.

Harry huffed. He got what Chiron was trying to say. As director, Chiron could not directly help like this. There were probably oaths against it. As much as he hated to, Chiron could not do anything.

"Now then, what to do with you?" Chiron asked. "I will need to take this Olympus, assuming that Mr. D has not yet done so."

Luke turned to Harry. "You always say that every problem has a solution. What's mine?"

Harry closed his eyes in thought. There was only one way to ensure that Luke would live. Yes, Harry was beyond angry at Luke for accepting the Titans' offer. But that did not mean that he wanted Luke to die. A mistake, no matter how severe, should not define Luke.

Harry sighed deeply. "Chiron... there is no need for the King to deliver any punishment on Luke."

"Harry, I fully understand that you wish to save your friend but–"

"Luke Castellan is dead. He died on this very bed, from the wound I inflicted upon him. Caliburn's cleansing effect was too powerful, and neither his body nor his soul remains because the Fragment had bound itself that deeply," Harry said.

Luke and Chiron looked at Harry with wide eyes. Both understood what he was saying.

Chiron's expression softened. "Mr. D will not believe that."

"He will. Because shortly after he left, Luke attacked us. It proved that the initial wound had not cleansed him completely, forcing me to use Caliburn again. This time it destroyed him in its entirety because just how much of him was corrupted. That should give you a very plausible scenario."

Luke closed his eyes, a few tears escaping. "So I have to run away."

Harry nodded. "Trust me... this hurts me too. But if we say that you ran away, it would be a matter of time before someone or the other is sent to track you down. But if you are dead, there is no need to do anything of the sorts."

"They'll hate you," Luke said softly, referring to not only his Cabin and siblings but the Camp as a whole. "Does not matter if you say this was justified... they will still hate you."

"Yeah. But you'll live," Harry said in response.

Chiron rubbed his eyes tiredly. He felt a weird sort of pride for Harry. He was willing to take the hate just to let Luke live. It was a true heroic action, not born of any desire for honor or glory or any sense of want of fame. Simply a friend protecting another, because he felt it was the right thing to do.

"Luke... the harpies that patrol the Western Boundary will be on a five minute break in about half an hour." Chiron said simply as he walked out.

Luke turned his eyes to the retreating Centaur in surprise, and nodded. Then he turned to Harry. "Why go so far for me?"

Harry smiled. "What do you mean go so far? You're out of the Camp, now I have no rival to the best swordsman title."

Luke could not help but laugh. "In your dreams, owl-head."

"Your window is growing ever shorter... you scatter brained trickster." Harry said as held out his hand. Luke smiled as he shook Harry's hand.

"...Look after them for me," Luke said softly.

Harry nodded as he left the infirmary.

Luke did not waste any more time in leaving, making sure to steal a sword from the Forge as he left. While the _Backbiter_ was unharmed, Luke did not want anything to do with Kronos. As Chiron had said, there was no one patrolling the Western Border by the time he got there.

Luke took one last look at the distant Cabins and the demigods going about. With a heavy heart, he turned around and walked into the distance.

* * *

Silena smiled to herself as she found Harry by himself in a secluded area in the Forest, near Zeus's Fist. He was sitting on the ground, his eyes closed.

"Hey," She said as he approached him, sitting down in front of him. "I tried to find you when I woke up back in my own Cabin. I had a feeling you would come here. I was sure that explosion would send me on a one way trip into – huh?"

She stopped talking as she saw Harry open his bloodshot eyes, with tears that ran down his cheeks. "Hey," Silena asked softly, "What's the matter?"

Silena pulled him into a hug, hoping to comfort him.

Harry could not help himself as he slumped into her arms. "I – I think.."

Silena patted his back, understanding that he was struggling to speak. "You know you can tell me anything, right?" She whispered.

"I just exiled someone," Harry said as he swallowed a lump in his throat. "I... may have killed him. Or maybe I am the reason he dies in the near to distant future." He chuckled at himself. "Look at me... I made a split second decision that was upheld by the wisest being in Camp... and here I am second guessing it. Whether it was the right thing to do. Whether it was the best outcome for everyone. If there was another solution. Its truly pathetic isn't it?"

"No, it is not. Why don't you tell me everything?" Silena asked as she moved back, separating herself from the one sided hug. She looked at his tearful face, trying to hold back her own sadness at seeing him in that state.

Harry knew full well that he wasn't supposed to. It would defeat the whole purpose of the 'Luke is dead' ruse. But he couldn't help it. He didn't want to hide anything, especially from Silena.

Silena, for her part, listened intently as Harry told her everything, from the time he appeared in Camp to Luke being possessed by Kronos, to the part about Luke's faked death at his hands.

Silena, for her part, could not believe it. If anyone else would have told her this, she would not have even bought any of it.

"So... Luke is gone," She said softly.

Harry nodded.

"And you told Chiron to tell Olympus that you killed him."

Harry nodded yet again.

"Yeah, that is ju – uhh what are you doing?" Harry asked as she hugged him again. This time, Harry was acutely aware of her body as it was pressed into his. She rested her head on his shoulder, even.

"I cannot say if that was the correct decision. Or if there was another solution," Silena said, her hot breath hitting Harry's ear. "But... I have full faith that if there was, you would have thought of it. No, you would have taken it. No matter how much you second guess yourself, there hasn't been a moment where you were wrong about something."

"Yeah, there are moments when I am wrong," Harry muttered, thinking back to all the times Rowena had scolded him for his many mistakes while learning magic and even the times he couldn't outmanoeuver her in chess or any other strategy game.

"I am trying to lift your spirits," Silena said, in a slightly annoyed tone. "And I am sure that we are talking about different types of moments..."

There was a brief amount of silence as they separated themselves from each other's embrace.

"One of the moments where I was supposedly correct almost got you killed," Harry said. "If I knew... no, if I had planned for an event wherein he would try and take us all out at once..."

Silena narrowed her eyes. "You did not know he would."

"No, but I assumed that he absolutely needed us alive," Harry said. "It was a dangerous assumption."

"Why are you so hard to cheer up?!" Silena said a bit loudly.

Harry flinched at the sudden loud voice.

Silena took a small breath, giving Harry a smile.

"Well, I knew that a similar thing might happen when I fell for you..."

Harry wasn't sure he heard her correctly, but his face turned redder than a tomato nonetheless. "Wha – wha – did I?"

Silena giggled as Harry's brain shut down at her impromptu confession and tried to reboot itself. She stood up, dusting herself off. "Its okay if you do–"

Harry stopped her, grabbing her hand. "Does.. I mean... do you... uh... can I... wanna-go-out-with-me-sometime?"

Silena looked at him. Harry couldn't meet her eyes, and his face was still red. Given that he had spoken that last line in a very fast manner, it took her a moment to decipher what he had said.

When she did, Silena smiled widely. "Of course I do!"

* * *

"This is very troubling news, Chiron," Zeus said as his stormy blue eyes fixated on the Centaur who bowed in the center of the Throne Room. "Dionysus, can you confirm?"

"Bah, those brats keep fighting so many times that I honestly lose count," said the god uncaringly from his throne.

Hermes glared heatedly at Dionysus, as did Athena. "That is one of my sons! AND HE–"

"Silence, Hermes," Zeus said, his eyes flaring with power. "If Chiron is to be believed, then your brat not only accepted a deal from the Titans, making him a traitor, but also had a direct hand in stealing my Master Bolt."

Hermes flinched. If nothing else, it was the calm tone of his father that scared him the most. Normally when he got angry, Zeus was loud, threw more insults than all the sailors in the world combined. But this silent fury was something that was truly frightening.

"If nothing else, I should award Athena's boy for dealing out a quick justice," Zeus said in a softer tone. Then he turned to Athena, who looked proud that her father had praised her son. "Well? Can Caliburn actually function like that?"

"I am afraid that only Merlin would know for certain..." Athena said reluctantly. Despite possessing nearly all of the world's knowledge, there were some things that she simply did not know. It frustrated her to no end, even admitting that was a blow to her pride.

But Caliburn was something that was entirely shrouded in myth and legends, and nothing was definitive.

Zeus closed his eyes. "This is actually a blessing. With his special vision, no doubt he was a witness to this event. Who can either confirm or deny Chiron's account," he mused. He turned to Hermes. "Bring him here within the minute."

Hermes stood up from his throne, swallowing the sadness and frustration. Before he could even move, however, there was slight shift in the wind as a tall brown haired man, wearing a trench-coat, seemingly appeared in the Throne Room, standing beside Chiron.

For his part, Chiron did not so much as flinch. He hid his nervousness quite well, however.

"No need," Merlin said, his bright green eyes fixed on Zeus. He bowed deeply.

Zeus growled. "You were observing this meeting, despite the fact that I ordered you to never train your eyes anywhere on Olympus!"

"And you swore never to have any demigod children. If the King can break his own words, surely his subjects can't be expected to uphold his words either," Merlin said, shrugging his shoulders in an uncaring manner.

Zeus gripped his throne tightly, his body shaking with rage. It did not help that Hera was sitting right beside him, glaring at him. He knew that Hera was mocking him, as if her expression said 'I told you this would happen'

"Did you witness what happened between the sons of Hermes and Athena?" Zeus asked, gritting his teeth.

"Of course!" Merlin said. "And it went down exactly as he said."

Zeus narrowed his eyes. "Did it now?"

"You call me here, ask for my statement, and then doubt said statement?" Merlin asked in return. Then he gave a small smile. "But I suppose that there was something that Chiron left out..."

Zeus turned his attention to Chiron, who gulped. "Oh?"

"Don't blame the old Centaur. It sounds unbelievable even to me! But Luke let it slip that Ares took the Master Bolt off of him! Imagine that!" Merlin said with a laugh. "I mean, why would that old war monger steal something that powerful from the real thief, especially with a potential war breaking out? Imagine that!"

Zeus's eyes widened. He looked at Ares's empty throne. "So... he thinks he can truly get away with this? And he had the audacity to lie to me that he could not find it?" Zeus muttered to himself.

Chiron looked at Merlin in confusion and slight relief. He honestly had no idea how to tell Zeus of Ares's deception. Had he said that Luke told them such before he suddenly attacked Harry, as was their fabricated tale, it would have been easily picked apart. If not by Zeus, then by Athena.

Merlin winked at Chiron in response, that only Athena caught. She narrowed her eyes at the two. She wondered what Merlin was up to. She could just point it out, but Merlin would find a way to talk himself out of it.

It did sound a bit suspicious to her when Merlin had said _'it went down exactly as he said.'_

Before she could do anything, Zeus called out, "Artemis! Athena! Apollo! Hermes!"

All of them, except Athena, immediately stood at attention.

"Find and bring Ares here. I do not care in what condition he is in! I do not care what he's doing! I want him here within the hour!"

Athena was still contemplating if she should bring up her suspicions, even as the other three flashed out of Olympus.

"NOW ATHENA!" Zeus yelled, breaking her out of her thoughts.

"My apologies, Father," Athena said, flashing out after her siblings. That would have to wait. Zeus was too fixated on Merlin's accusation.

"Well, if there is nothing else," Merlin said. Zeus waved his hand in dismissal as he slumped back into his throne. Merlin bowed again as he disappeared into thin air. Chiron was dismissed as well, and Dionysus walked over to him, to take him back to Camp Half Blood.

"Keep in the loop next time," Dionysus said in a low whisper as he and Chiron flashed out, that went unheard by the rest of the Olympians.

Chiron looked at the god in surprise, before nodding.

* * *

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover were immensely confused.

They had just arrived at Las Vegas after Ares had given them supplies and a rather... questionable method of travel.

They were about to step in the Lotus Casino, to rest for the night, when Hermes himself had come to them.

Without saying much, he had taken the backpack that Percy was carrying, saying that the real lightning thief was caught. There had been an emergency meeting of all Olympians, and the thief, Ares, had been punished after he had revealed everything.

Then Hermes had handed them three flight tickets back to New York, saying that Zeus was willing to overlook Percy entering his domain just this once, as at the end of the day, he had taken it upon himself to find the Bolt.

Percy wanted to ask what about his mother, but Hermes did not stay long enough.

All three of them just knew that their quest was suddenly cut short, and they were meant to return. Percy, very badly, wanted to go to Hades just to try and get his mother back, but a second surprise had come in the form of Mrs. Dodds, or rather the Fury Alecto, who had informed him that his mother had been returned to her home after the stolen Helm was returned.

And thus, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover were sitting in the plane that was taking them back to New York, wondering what just happened.

They did not even know that Hades' Helm was even stolen.

* * *

Merlin sighed in annoyance as he turned to face Athena once again. "Must you be so insistent in disturbing my peace and quiet?"

"Why save Hermes's son?" Athena asked simply.

"I am not at all surprised that you caught on," Merlin said with a slight smile. "And as to why, well... call it a bet with the Fates."

Athena raised a brow. "A bet?"

"That night... what do you think happened? How did your son survive a spell that kills unconditionally?"

"I am clearly not as well versed in the mystics as you or Hecate. But I assume that Lily must have used a very obscure ritual to–"

"Nope," Merlin cut in. "The Killing Curse is just that. If its target is something that is alive and mortal, as in 'that which can die' the curse _will_ kill. No exceptions. Nothing can save you from this, as the curse is literally death being imposed on your very body and magic."

Athena's eyes widened. "Then the only ones who could have saved him was..."

"Exactly," Merlin said as he nodded. "A unique existence, whose thread was never cut on purpose. This makes him such that he is no longer influenced by the Fates. As such, he possess a unique ability to free others from theirs, something that he must never be made aware of. After all, the bet entails how many lives he saves for the better. It would be a shame if he actively tries to do so and fails at all of them."

"But why would they? It makes him a chaotic element!"

"Isn't that what they felt was needed?" Merlin asked. "Fates merely exist to ensure that there is balance. As such, at times, there will be a need to do something chaotic. And they chose someone who is very similar to a king I once knew. To the point where I wonder if he reincarnated. But that is wishful thinking."

"Harry is nothing like Arthur," Athena stated. That much she knew for certain.

"On the surface, sure," Merlin said. "But how many humans, or even demigods have you met with the Fatal Flaw of _altruism?"_


End file.
